


Wild and Free

by SparkedFires



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Intelligent Monsters, Lizalfos Are Sorta Sapient, Low-key Lyric Fic in Chapter One, Lynels are Sapient, Moblins and Bokoblins are Still Dumb Monsters, No Beta We Die Like Champions, Rhoam is a DICK, So is Calamity Ganon, So is Link's Father, Talking Link (Legend of Zelda), The Divine Beasts are Dragons, Zonai!Link
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:27:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 44,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27118864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SparkedFires/pseuds/SparkedFires
Summary: Link came from a proud tribe of warriors, ones he only knew from stories from his mother. What happened to them, she never answer to tell him. He chose to leave, to live like his ancestors once did. Doing so taught him the brutality of the other half of his lineage, and allowed bitterness towards the Hylian Kingdom to take root. But a shadow grows on the horizon, and he can't just stand back and watch the world burn to spite it. He was named after a hero, after all. He has to do something.Title and summery are subject to change, especially summery as I'm not good at them.
Comments: 59
Kudos: 160





	1. Chapter 1

"Deep in the forest, under the fog. Armies surround us, waiting for dark. Wearing their iron, masks like a shield. I know they're coming, I know they're here."

A soft lullaby rang in his ears as sobs racked his sore body. Though his mother's voice was sweet and calm, there was a hidden intensity inside it. She was completely furious, and he knew that his father would soon learn that. He winced and whimpered as she rubbed a salve on his injuries. He knew that it was to help him, but it stung so badly at first.

"Shhh," she gently hushed him, the ancient language of their people so much more familiar and soothing to him than the more refined Hylian they were supposed to speak, "It will be alright, little dragon. He will know that he has made a grave mistake, I will not stop with mere words this time. I promise you."

He nuzzled against her, a sniffle escaping him despite his efforts to stop, "Why does he hate me? What did I do?"

She paused for a moment, before sighing and running her fingers through his hair, "It is what you are he hates so. The blood that runs in your veins. He does not see you for who you are like I do. He sees us both the same. Savage beasts. He does not understand."

"Why would he have children with you if he thinks that?" He didn't understand the logic there. He would never marry someone he thought was a monster.

"Oh he believed he could domesticate me like some wild dog." She said with a huff and a wave of her hand, "And I stayed because I had no where else to go. And now I stay because my heart is here." She smiled down at him, and placed a kiss to his forehead, "You are my heart, you and your sister. I love you more than my own life. And one day, when you are older, I plan to take you both home."

"Home.... Mama, where is home?"

"Far to the southeast, in a place the Hylians call Faron. It is a land of trees and warmth, alongside the sea. There is a village I passed through on the way to here, where I met that man. It is called Lurelin. The villagers there descended from our people who chose to live there instead of within the jungle I came from." Her gaze drifted southward, home bound. He knew she ached to go back.

"Why did you leave?"

She stayed quiet for so long, he thought she would never tell him. Finally, she answered, "Our people are gone now. I will not tell you how, not yet. It is not a story for young warriors. When you are older, I will let you know." She hummed a bit and returned her attention to her son, "Do not be sad though, little dragon. We are not the last, you, I, and your sister. There were other survivors of the great tragedy. I am sure of that. As sure as I am that the stars will glitter each night."

He winced again as the salve was applied to his shoulder, but at least the other places it had been used no longer burned. They were actually a bit numb, the pain of the injuries held at bay by the medicine. He turned his head a bit to watch her work, frowning at the harsh red marks on his skin. His father was ruthless in his training, using all manner of weapons and making him do so as well. His limbs ached from the excursion of swinging the heavy iron and steel of the miniature claymore he'd been tasked with learning, and the marks of discipline stung and prickled. He knew his father hadn't meant to bruise him, or at least he vaguely hoped that was so, but he still held a grudge against the man for such rough treatment. And his mother agreed, always fighting against this training, saying how even their tribe of warriors hadn't trained their children so harshly or so young. It would usually buy him a week or two of peace before the training resumed. Perhaps this time it would stop completely? He didn't dare dream so big.

His mother noticed him lost in thought and said, "My little dragon, do you know why I named you as I did?"

That surprised him, and he blinked and looked up at her, "Well.... no. I didn't know there was a reason at all."

"Well there is. I gave you your name in honor of an ancient and mighty warrior, blessed with insurmountable courage. He saved the land, time and time again, never asking for reward, just doing what was right. They say that whenever danger and evil threatens the land, he returns anew to conquer it. Some say it is but a myth. I believe it to be fact. And you, my golden treasure, I believe to hold the same courage in you. I felt it from the moment you were born, a power in your little body." She gently pressed her palm to his chest over his heart. She nodded and gave him a determined smile, "I hope you never have to face the evil of legend, but I do know you are worthy of the name of a hero."

His eyes widened at her tale, the clear blue still sparkling with unshed tears, "Mama... I... I don't think I'm all that brave.... I... I feel afraid a lot, actually...."

"Courage is not the absence of fear, little dragon. It is the ability to face your fear for what is right. The strength to stand up against frightful things and do what needs to be done. You may not see it now, but you are still young. Only nine years have seen you grow, and you will learn that you have this strength as more come and go. I know it. Do not doubt yourself."

"I'm still not so sure...."

She chuckled and kissed his forehead once more, "You will see someday. You will surprise yourself. Though I must ask you to promise me something."

"Huh?"

"That you will never run blindly into danger. No matter how brave you may be, you need to use your head and instincts. A plan will save you where your strength may fail."

"Think before I fight? Okay Mama." That didn't sound so hard, really. Though he wasn't sure how a plan would help him if he wasn't strong enough, he didn't doubt his mother. She'd never been wrong before, and had always steered him in the right direction.

"Not just before, during." She corrected, lightly tapping his nose with her pointer finger, "You are no mindless beast, and that will save you should you ever be in trouble. Especially when people will believe you to be thoughtless for what you are. Promise me, please."

"I-I promise Mama...." He was beginning to get a bit worried. Was his mother okay? Things... seemed a bit off. Was she afraid of something? "I promise."

She relaxed with a slight sigh, "Thank you, Link. Now, how would you like to help me cook?"

Link perked up at that, nodding enthusiastically. He loved cooking, and his mother had taught him well. She helped him to stand on his unsteady legs and took his hand to lead him to the cooking pot. He cherished those times with his mother, learning the ways of his people, and the skills she could pass to him. She made days better, like a warm blanket on a frigid day. Even the harsh training with his father didn't seem so bad with her to comfort him after the ordeal.

"Oh-oh, that light," She continued her lullaby quietly under her breath as she gathered ingredients, handing a few to him and gesturing to the pot. "Oh-oh it's bright."

The words of the song where ingrained in his mind. He'd hear it so many times throughout his life that he knew he'd never forget it. Even years later, as her cold body was slowly lowered into the ground. Even then, as his sister cling to his leg and sobbed uncontrollably, his own tears silently streaming down his face as he glared at his expressionless father. Even late that night, as he stared southward thoughtlessly. Even as he ran and ran and ran, further from the world he knew and towards the one he'd been told about his entire life. Though it all, the song was playing in his mind.

His legs carried him far beyond the village he'd been born in, until finally they could take no more. He tripped and collapsed atop a hill, and couldn't muster the strength to get back up. He slowly curled into a tight ball and grit his teeth, his hands curled into fists in his hair. He tried to be brave. He tried to be strong. But the wail escaped him regardless, a loud, piercing sound that sounded more like a pained animal than a grief stricken boy. Whether anyone heard or not, he didn't care anymore. He eventually slipped into a restless sleep, his mother's voice echoing through his head, 'Sleep for today....'

He laid there as the sun rose, almost too tired from running and crying to even register the warmth on his skin. But the light drew his eyes up, where, distantly, he spied a glimmering on the horizon. A thin line of blue just beyond the grass he laid in. He pushed himself up to see what it was. The ocean. It looked just like his mother had told him, and his breath caught in his throat. It was so close... if he scaled this peak, could he catch sight of home?

He forced himself to stand, shaky and weak, and slowly clawed his way up to the top of the rocks. And there, just beyond the plains and cliffs, were trees new and strange and all too familiar. That had to be it, the jungle! Where his mother came from! Whether determination or desperation gave him his sudden burst of energy didn't matter as he scrambled down the steep hill he found himself on. He slipped near the bottom, but didn't stop this time. The minor scrapes and bruises were nothing he wasn't accustomed to. Perhaps he had something to thank his father for after all. He refused to stop now, not when he was so close.

How many hours it took to reach the trees was irrelevant. He was too focused on his goal to even notice that the sun was beginning to set behind him. What mattered is that he was almost home. And yet, he skidded to a stop at the line of change, where the unusual trees burst from the land and rose above him. It was warm here, and humid, and the hair on his arms stood on end as if lightning was about to strike. This place... it was so strange. All his senses were registering sights and smells and sounds like he'd never experienced before, and it was overwhelming. But it all felt so... right. Perhaps that was the scariest part of it all.

He took a breath, closed his eyes, and crossed the threshold, slowly walking into this new world straight out of his mother's stories. And there he stood for a moment, braced for whatever might happen next. But nothing monumental happened. No fanfare, no screaming monsters, not even an eerie silence. All he received was odd warmth settled deep in his chest. He opened his eyes and put a hand over his heart, looking down more at the ground than himself, and he stood there for a while. Slowly, he began to move forward again. He couldn't stand here waiting for a major event forever. He'd made it to the jungle, yes, but there was a place hidden deeper in these woods and he planned to reach it. The place where his ancestors had settled down.

Admittedly, he may have been distracted by every tiny sound, and every rustle of movement in the brush, and he may have stopped a few times to observe the pillars lining the road. And he couldn't deny that he'd stopped on the massive bridge to gaze out over the largest lake he'd ever seen and it's numerous waterfalls. And he might have gone a bit out of his way to avoid the stable built just on the other side, which definitely rubbed him the wrong way to see out here, but it only served to slow him a bit. His mission was more important than investigating every single new thing he came across, being frustrated at the people who'd chosen to build a settlement in this place, or even to rest despite the full body ache he was beginning to develop. It was nothing a nap later couldn't heal.

The paved path he'd been following deeper into the jungle abruptly turned at a river, skirting around it as if to avoid the woods on the other side, refusing to connect to the old stone bridge that was there. It seemed as if that area of the jungle would be untouched by Hylians. Though he was glad for that, it also meant he now had nothing guiding him. He had nothing to point him towards his goal except the knowledge that it was here and possibly some pillars sprinkled about in that part. At least there was a thin game trail meandering trough the jungle that he could follow. Though, it didn't take long before something drew him from the path. A faint feeling that something was calling to him. He knew there was no one out here, and yet he could have sworn he heard singing and drums. He hesitated, but the draw was so strong that he couldn't stop his feet from taking him in the direction of the ghostly noise.

And it had not led him wrong. At the dawn of the second sunrise since he'd ran from his old life, he'd found it. Massive sculpted dragons pointing down an unpaved path worn down by feet, and just beyond that, what he'd been searching for. The structures made of weathered stone, dragon towers all around him, pillars and walls built into the cliff encircling a clear area, paths leading off into the jungle around it. This was it. This was home. And he could feel it. He could easily imagine his ancestors walking in this place, children playing, people gossiping, skull donning warriors with weapons of dragon's bone bringing home food for the tribe. If only he wasn't here alone.

A quick glance confirmed that there were no free standing houses, just like his mother told him. Instead, they were built into the walls that held back the cliffs, dug into the stone to offer protection from the elements with their entrances hidden from plain sight. He would have climbed up and set himself up in one of the old houses, but right now he simply didn't have the energy. Fatigue was wearing him down fast now that he'd finally reached his destination. So, he found a spot covered in soft ferns and protected by the wide fronds of a tree, and let his body finally rest. He'd earned it at this point. He had work to do when he awoke, setting up a home, foraging and gathering, and making the weapons he'd need. Possibly even clearing out monsters if any had decided to set up around here. For now, he'd rest. Possibly sleep for the entire day after pushing himself for so long. But tomorrow? Just as the words of his mother's song said, 'Tomorrow we fight.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not going to pretend to have an upload schedule, but I do have two other chapters already written so I'm gonna try to do a chapter every week or two? Yeah. Note that I get super rambly occasionally, I'm sorry.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may have gotten a bit rambley at some points.

Link awoke with a groan, his body sore. For a moment, he was confused. He hadn't trained the day before, had he? No. No he didn't think so. So why was he so weary? His eyes fluttered open, and he paused. Ferns and grass and leaves, not cloth and cut wood and glass. Then it all came back to him. In a way, he'd thought it to be nothing more than some sort of feverish dream, making it here. But no, he was here, actually here. He sat up and looked around, taking in his surroundings more now that he'd slept and was far more aware than he had been.

The stone of his new home was old and smoothed down by wind and rain, but still proudly displayed the symbols of his people. Ticked spirals and runes and depictions of people, dragons, owls, and all sorts of monsters and creatures. He reached up and ran his hand over a few of the ancient letters alongside the images, only really recognizing a little here and there off the top of his head. He'd spend some time later reading the runes since they'd take a bit to decipher. He never had been very good at reading them, thanks to everyone making him learn to read Hylian first. Which was practical, sure, but that didn't mean he had to like it.

He pulled himself away from the stone with a small wince as his stomach growled. It'd been a while since he'd eaten... that would have to be his first goal. Without a flint or anything metal, he wouldn't be able to do any cooking, so he figured he'd need to stick to something simple. He could eat raw fish or even meat if he'd had a weapon to hunt with, but that was something he'd rather not do. Not for fear of getting sick, he could eat pretty much anything and be fine, unlike a pure blooded Hylian, but more just because it didn't taste great. Besides, he'd always been warned against hunting on an empty stomach if he could avoid it. So, foraging it is.

Thankfully, food was pretty plentiful here! Bananas, durians and mushrooms all grew nearby and didn't take much to get to them, and he even found a radish growing along the banks of a river. Which... he may have stopped for a long time at since as soon as he'd seen it, he'd realized just how thirsty he was, and plunged his head right into the water until he was forced to come up for air. Water had never tasted so good before. He'd been tempted to abandon his food and leap in, but hunger won in the end. He could go for a swim later.

He was going to start with the durian first, since it was something he'd never seen before and he was excited to try what he'd been told was a delicious fruit, but... they all smelled completely rotten! He hadn't even opened them yet, why would they smell so bad? He knew they were edible, his mother had told him about them, but she'd never warned him that they smelled like old boots that had just been taken off after a week of wearing! He grimaced at the idea of even trying the thing, but... well, they're such a plentiful food source, he'd be a fool to let them all go to waste. So he found a good rock to work with and set to crack the fruit in half.

Opening it up did NOT help the durian's first impression, and he coughed as the smell just got stronger. The look of the insides was off putting, yellow and kind of... organ looking. Who was the first person to open one of these up and think that it looks like food? Link figured they had to have been crazy. Well... at least it wasn't as slimy as he thought it would be from the look. That didn't make it much easier for him to try and eat it. He had to keep telling himself that he'd eaten worse before. Finally, he just closed his eyes and shoved it in his mouth, bracing for the worst. And... it was sweet! It quite literally tasted the exact opposite of how it smelled! He stared at the fruit in disbelief, then just shrugged and kept eating. Good is good, no reason to question it. He just hoped he could get used to that stench.

He ate his fill of fruit, then got to work finding a place to stay. The entrances to the houses were extremely well hidden, and he found that they weren't uniform. Some were higher than others, and some were just false entrances that led to nothing. Most of the homes that he walked into were massive and sprawling, which didn't surprise him. Many generations would live together, he'd been told. Massive families watching out for each other.... It just didn't feel right taking over such a large house when he was all on his own.

Eventually, he found one that was perfect: smaller, slightly more accessible, and with a stairway to get to the top of the wall from inside. The blue-gray stone walls and floors of his new home were nothing like he'd been used to, but he loved it. Carvings on the walls glowed a light blue green and illuminated the inside in a eerily beautiful way. They seemed to tell a story of some kind, one he looked forward to reading. There was a cooking pot in the middle of the main room that he cleaned of cobwebs and dust, though he couldn't find any flint around. In one of the three back rooms was a deep, stone basin overflowing with old water that had a circular stone blocking a hole in the bottom which he assumed to be a bath tub of some kind. It'd be a pain to clean and refill it, probably, but maybe it'd be worth it at some point. For now, he just emptied it by pulling out the stone. The other two rooms were completely empty save for some shattered fragments of wood and torn animal furs. He thought they may have been beds at some point, though he didn't like to imagine what had happened to them. He wasn't really sure he wanted to know. He just cleaned them out, trying not to let his mind consider the possibilities.

Food and water, check. House ready to live in, pretty much. Now he needed to focus on weapons. If he wanted to hunt or defend himself, he was going to need them. So he headed out through the top entrance to see if he could find anything to start out with. Honestly though, there wasn't much. The trees weren't exactly good to break branches off of considering there were only fronds at the very top of them, and the smaller trees were too flexible to break and use except possibly as a rudimentary bow. Too bad he didn't have any thread or arrows. He was starting to get a bit concerned. Without weapons, he was going to have a difficult time in the jungle. What if he ran across a monster? It wasn't like he couldn't fight with his bare hands, but he'd be at a massive disadvantage if he did.

It was as concern started to morph into true worry that he began to hear them. Odd squeaking type noises and the sound of something hopping around. He crouched immediately, his breath catching in his throat, and began to sneak closer to inspect the situation. He spotted the source of the noise quickly, and panic came in full force. Lizalfos. Two of them. One was holding a spear, and the other a vicious looking, metal boomerang. He was completely done for if the noticed him, so he did his best to just slowly back away. In his retreat, he didn't see the cliff just beyond the treeline, and he stumbled with a startled yelp into the river below. Thankfully, it was slow moving, so getting back out wouldn't be a problem. What would be a problem was the fact that Lizalfos are absolutely not deaf and would have definitely heard that.

The only thing he could think to do as he saw them rushing over was to snatch a stunned fish out of the water and hold it out with his eyes tightly closed. Lizalfos like fish, right? Maybe they'd want the fish more than his life. And... it seemed to be working? At the very least, he hadn't felt cold steel slice his skin yet. He opened one of his eyes and noticed the two lizard monsters staring at the fish in his hand hungrily. He looked at it, then at them again, before tossing it up to the top of the cliff. The Lizalfo with the spear skewered it in midair, and began hopping and making noise excitedly, and the other looked down at him again. Right, two monsters, two fish. Makes sense. Feeding them was far better than dying.

So Link nodded to them and pulled himself out of the water, waiting to grab up another passing bass. No way did he want to disappoint the things with weapons. Thankfully, Hyrule bass are rather common and easy to catch, so it didn't take long to get another and toss it up as well. The other Lizalfo grabbed it and did the same dance as the first, and then did something that shocked him. It held its boomerang over the cliff and dropped it so it landed near him, before taking off back into the trees with its friend.

Had... had he just traded with a pair of monsters? He didn't know that was possible at all. All he'd heard about them was how to fight them, and how bloodthirsty and vicious they all were. Then again... that's also how his father talked about his tribe. He picked up the boomerang and examined it, then nodded at how surprisingly sharp the edge was. Whoever had made it was a good blacksmith. Were they a Lizalfo as well? Link couldn't imagine a Hylian blacksmith making weapons or armor for them, so it must have been. And it required some level of intelligence to do that kind of work.

It would probably be better to think about it later, as assumptions where going to get him no where. He slipped the handle of the boomerang under his belt to keep it held there, which wasn't an ideal way to carry it, but it would work for now until he could fashion a strap for it. At least his weapon problem was fixed for now. Maybe he could trade another Lizalfo for a bow and arrows sometime. Or... he looked at his new weapon and thought about it. He could go hunt down Bokoblins now. Those creatures really were lower intelligence, and their weapons were just crudely hacked from branches and logs occasionally jabbed through with hard bones, but even those would be helpful to have. Especially a spear for hunting. He nodded to himself and headed off on his goal.

He doubted there would be many in the jungle, so he'd have to leave it. Not ideal in any way, since he'd literally just gotten here, but he had little choice. He headed further west, following the path his ancestors had laid down in this place, and eventually came to a bridge very similar to the one he'd crossed earlier, the one the Hylian made road had so clearly avoided. It gave him some hope that the forest on the other side, one that was far more like what he remembered from more northern areas, wasn't inhabited by people.

Almost the second he left the jungle trees, it was as if the temperature and humidity plummeted, something he unconsciously heaved a sigh of relief for. His clothes were definitely going to need to change if he was going to keep living there, they were just too hot. This area of the forest was plentiful with apples, acorns and mushrooms, and seemed like it hadn't seen a person in a very long time, which brought a smile to his face. More ruins filled this area, pillars and dragon's heads mostly, and he was starting to assume Hylians just wanted to avoid areas heavy with his ancestors' influence. Which was fine by him, any area without people in it was another he felt safe staying in.

He was testing the strength of a branch, wondering if it'd make for a good bow, when he heard a scream. Immediately he was running towards it at full speed. The source was a younger woman around his age who near the edge of the woods, two Bokoblins swinging their weapons wildly at her. He had arrived just in time to see one of them club her on the head, knocking her out. He immediately leapt into action. He threw the boomerang, the cold steel slicing the red one across the chest before returning to him. The wounded one shrieked and began to charge at him, while the other just looked confused. Dodging the Bokoblin's attacks was child's play, and he finished it off without too much issue. Now the other one saw him, though, and it wasn't going to be as easy as the first judging by its blue skin.

It came at him, gripping it's crude spear in just one hand, before suddenly stopping and yelling. It began to swing it's spear wildly above its head in a circular motion. He hadn't expected that, and tried to leap back, only to be whacked hard in the side and flung. Being light made it easy to be thrown far, but at least it made the landing easier. He quickly jumped to his feet, flinching at the ache in his ribs. It was nothing he couldn't handle. He rushed at the beast, which was apparently having trouble stopping it's own spin, and he managed to get several good slices to its back before having to jump out of the way of its jab.

And that's when it happened. Everything seemed to slow, and all but the Bokoblin blurred. And he could still move just as fast as ever. He didn't question it, now wasn't the time fore that, and he let loose a flurry of strikes as quickly as he could, until time caught back up with him. The Bokoblin simply crumpled to the ground, finished.

He shook his head to try and clear the sound of blood rushing in his ears, then glanced over to the injured girl. He jolted a bit, seeing her begin to stand, and he bolted into the underbrush. He did not want to be found by anyone. Call him paranoid, but he worried that any Hylian could spread rumors and it somehow end up getting back to his father. And right now, he just wanted to be disappeared.

"W-Wait!" He paused, though he silently cursed himself for it. At least he knew he was thoroughly hidden in the brush, "I... could you come out?" He had no such intentions, and she seemed to understand that after a long stretch of silence. "I... thank you. You saved my life! I just wanted to hunt out some truffles when those things attacked. I would have been a goner! Uhm... h-here. Consider it a gift." She picked up a basket from the ground and scooped a few mushrooms that had been scattered out of it, then placed it near the brush, "Don't worry, I think my truffle hunting days are done for now."

She nodded and left after that. He waited a long time to make sure she didn't double back before coming out of hiding. He... he really had just saved her life, hadn't he? He hadn't even thought about it like that, he just knew she needed help and he could do that. He'd saved a life. And it felt amazing! He felt so great after that! Like... like a hero.

He picked up the basket and gathered anything he could from the Bokoblin bodies, which was mainly teeth and their weapons. He was set for now with all of this. He could even use the teeth for arrow heads thanks to their shape. But honestly, his sense of accomplishment wasn't coming from that. He decided then that if he ever saw anyone in need of help, that he'd do what he could, no matter how much he wanted to be invisible. The lingering joy of heroism was too much to go without.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lizalfos are just bros honestly. I always wondered how they got armor and weapons, especially since they're literally called Lizal weapons, and they've got a whole village and everything, so yeah. Intelligent!


	3. Chapter 3

Link had been living in his jungle home for nearly a month now. He'd adjusted very well to this kind of life, growing stronger, more agile, and getting more endurance every day. He now knew his territory forwards and backwards, from the north east where a massive statue of a dragon that held a spring inside its mouth was (which he'd yet to even approach. He remembered stories of this sacred place, and knew he hadn't yet earned the right to enter), to up in the cliffs and plateaus within the jungle that offered such a beautiful view of both lakes, to the west where jungle turned into forest all the way until the trees finally thinned and stopped, at which point he could catch sight of the Hylian road again. He'd done some exploring outside his turf, but nothing extensive, and he'd never ventured too far into the lands on the other side of the road, which cut him off from the southern coast and whatever laid beyond the western river. He'd been planning to cross that sometime, but he'd just never bothered yet.

He'd learned so much while living here. Like that there was a Lizalfo village a bit to the east, around a pool of water. Though he knew they couldn't talk to him, he'd made a bit of an alliance with them. He brought them fish and bugs and they'd trade him arrows, bows and spears. They even greeted him if they happened to cross paths, which is what he'd found their curious little hops meant. Larger jumps were a sign of aggression.

He also found that Hylians avoided his territory like the plague, which he knew was because of his ancestors. He wished he knew the history between the two, why the Hylians hated them, and what cause his tribe to vanish like they did, but he was worried that was buried deep in the past. He had learned some things from the runes he'd managed to translate, stories about their arrival in this place, tales of a massive, benevolent spirit of courage that guarded these areas and took the form of a dragon, legends about a sacred power in their tribe, something he recalled his mother vaguely mentioning with about as many details as the runes themselves.

He'd made some improvements as well, mainly with his home. After the first heavy rainfall (which seemed to happen many times a day), he'd found out that the bath tub was actually more of a catch basin. There were small holes in the roof, and he assumed some sort of filtering system up there, since the rain water took so much time to actually fall down into the basin. So he'd taken a priority to clean it out immediately after that. A reliable source of clean water was vital, since it seemed drinking from the river wasn't the best idea. He'd had a horrible stomachache after doing that. He'd managed to finally find some flint, which was now sitting in the basket from the truffle girl on a little shelf above a large pile of firewood for the cooking pot. It had been a pain to find, and when he did, he'd gotten as much of it as he possibly could. He still didn't have a bed, and was just sleeping on a pile of animal furs, but it wasn't actually bad. It was just more of a nest than anything. He wished he could thank his mother tenfold for teaching him how to work with animal skins and make leather.

And about handcrafting clothes. He no longer wore the clothes he'd came to this place in, opting instead for leather clothes he'd made that were far cooler and less constricting... admittedly more revealing as well. But he'd been trying to copy the warrior's gear his mother had once drawn for him, which he had only a little success with. He just didn't know where he could find the skull or bones that made the garb what it was. And he had no idea how to make the paint. So it very barely looked like what he remembered. Well, he could fix it with time.

There was just one thing he'd yet to do, and that was to find one of his tribe's allies. Which, was a bit of a daunting task, considering that those allies were Lynels. Would an Lynel alive even know of his tribe? Would they understand him? And if so, how? These questions had been buzzing around his mind for weeks. It wasn't a stretch to say that he'd been putting off exploring so he'd be less likely to find one of the creatures. But now that he didn't have any more improving or resource gathering left to do, he really didn't have any excuse left to not go looking for one.

So, that was what he was going to do. He looked inside the little rucksack he'd made of leather, making sure for the third time that he had everything he'd need for the journey, which he expected to take a day or two at the least. Food, water, a flint and some wood, a few fish bound in palm leaves in case he ran into any unfamiliar Lizalfos, everything seemed in order. He sighed, tied his quiver and bow to it, and slung the bag over his shoulder. Lastly, he grabbed a steel tipped spear he'd traded for and headed out.

He was nervous, very nervous, but he knew it was something he really should do. It had been a rite of passage in his tribe, according to his mother. To train with Lynels and grow stronger than they could have alone, until they had finally earned the title of warrior. Then he'd be allowed to enter that spring, and every fiber of his being desperately wanted to do just that. It called to him, every time he wandered anywhere near it. So, he had to push through this anxiety. Be brave. Not exactly easy when he knew he was actively seeking out a five thousand pound lion horse.

He reached the edge of his territory fairly quickly, and instinctively scowled at the road and then over towards the massive gates that book ended the bridge over this other lake, who's name he'd still yet to learn. There were always Hylian guards posted at that gate, which made him tempted to go long way, south down and past a short peak onto the plains where horses were so commonly found. Despite its closeness to the road and multiple stables, people didn't often wander onto those plains, mostly because of the fact that there were Bokoblins that somehow had managed to figure out how to ride horses over there. Of course, spite isn't the best reason to not take the easiest path. The cliffs would block any view of him, and he was too far away from the massive bridge to be spotted anyway, so just going over the small cliffs in this area was the best option. Besides, the height would probably help him spot any signs of Lynels.

Except for a situation with a mountain goat trying to headbutt him off the side of the mountain, he'd had no trouble making it into a new area and up to a high point. From here, he could spot a river below him, but mostly he just saw more cliffs. He sighed a bit, realizing now that his journey might be far longer than he previously expected. Well, no point in complaining.

He headed down and decided to follow the river a bit to try and find an area where it wasn't so very wide. He decided to go south, simply because he didn't want to get any closer to the lake than he had to. When the plateau he was on finally stopped, he smiled at the sight of a natural bridge of stone across the river that he could use. So he scrambled down and crossed over. Sadly, it was just another normal looking plain and another ridge. He was beginning to wonder if there was anything over this way at all. He'd been traveling for a whole day now without any sign of... anything really, so he just set up camp under a tree to rest.

He woke up at dawn, and made the decision to tough it out just a bit longer. He'd top the ridge, and if he didn't see anything, he'd head back home, and that was that. There couldn't be nothing out this way, right? The next ridge was a bit more difficult to top than the previous one, but he made it before too long and finally saw something new. It was another plain, yes, but the grass was dry and yellow, and the trees were strange, all fat and round with tiny, scraggly branches. And, just beyond the savaging coyotes, he saw one at long last. A Lynel. It's fiery red mane and black body would have made it look intimidating all on its own, but the massive, metal club and sharp, bladed bow on its back made it downright terrifying. It glanced over at the coyotes and let out a roar that scared them away, and shook his bones even from as far away as he was.

He let out a shaky breath and slowly climbed down the cliff face after it had turned it's back. He'd much rather not climb down and immediately be face to face, that sounded like a horrible idea. He didn't take into account that Lynels probably had good hearing, because as soon as he'd turned, he found it staring him down with a piercing glare. He froze, not sure what to do in this situation, and he couldn't seem to get his voice to work with him. Until the Lynel drew it's club and began to rush at him, that is. He threw his hands up as if he could stop the it's assault, and yelled out in his ancestors language, "Wait!"

And somehow, it worked. The Lynel planted it's hooves and skidded to a halt not even a foot away. It huffed, it's eyes narrowed at him, but most of its hostility seemed to have waned. Now it was just wary. It lowered it's head a bit to be a bit more level with him, and then it spoke, "You speak the language of the wild people."

Link was shocked, he hadn't even considered the possibility that Lynels could speak! And this one's voice caught him even more off guard. Though it was just as strong as he'd expected, there was an odd softness to it, making the rumble sound less like a growl and more like a purr. He gulped and nodded, knowing that he needed to respond to it, "Y-Yes. Yes I do."

"I thought they had all been lost."

"No, there were survivors." He hoped... he hoped so much that it was 'survivors', plural, "My mother was one of them."

"Your mother." The Lynel pulled back and looked around, "And where is she? You seem a bit young to be out here all on your own like this."

"I'm fifteen years old!" He didn't know why he felt like he needed to defend his age, but he did, "And... and she.... she's not here anymore."

"... I see. I am named Graza, and I am the queen of these plains." Oh, so this is a female Lynel. She stood tall, her body far more relaxed than it was, and hooked her club back across her back, "And who are you?"

"I'm Link." He tried to stand taller, though he was still miniscule compared to Graza. Honestly... he was pretty small compared to most people anyway.

"You were given the name of a hero, interesting. So, what do you want from me, Link?" That sounded like a challenge.

"Teaching. My mother told me that Lynels and our people would spar together and get stronger. I just want to do what my ancestors did."

She cocked an eyebrow at him. She reached down and grabbed his arm (which was startling, but she was gentle so he didn't jerk away) and moved him away from the cliff wall a bit. She began to circle him, making an occasional hum or click of her tongue, and it occurred to him that she was evaluating him. It made him nervous.

"I've killed Bokoblins." He said dumbly, as if trying to defend himself again, "My father taught me how the Hylian knights fight, and my mother taught me how Zonai hunt and live. I know some things already."

"Yes, yes," She said with a chuckle, "They always do. Every time I've mentored one of you, it always begins with you telling me how much you know. The problem is, I don't actually care about what you know. Because you wouldn't be here to learn from me if you knew everything."

"I... just. I wanted you to know I'm not helpless. I'm stronger than I look."

"You wild people often are, I've found. I remember an interaction a leader of your people once had with the Lynel who used to live here." She smiled at him, which greatly softened her fierce features, "They had an argument over the best way to teach archery, and the Lynel suggested a wrestling match to resolve the discussion. It wasn't long before that tiny leader had flipped the Lynel over onto his back! It was quite a sight!"

Link stared wide eyed at Graza, surprised by such a story. He looked at himself, then back to her, "I... don't think I have quite that much strength."

"And I think you just might. Come little warrior, let's see exactly what I'm working with."

Link spent four days training with Graza. If his father's teaching had been grueling, then Graza's was next to torturous. And yet somehow, she always knew when to make him stop and rest, and her methods were far more effective and constructive. Despite its difficulty, he didn't find himself dreading each session. And between times, while he was resting, Graza would tell him stories and teach him about the history of Lynels and Zonai. She reminded him so much of his mother.... Strong, resourceful, patient, and fair.

On the fifth day, he was awoken not by Graza's voice, but by a blow to his shoulder. It wasn't exactly harsh, but it was enough to make him spring to his feet in preparation for a fight. Though he paused immediately when he saw his "attacker". A tiny Lynel, all pudgy and soft, with no mane, tiny stubs of horns, and gangly legs. It was holding a stick in one hand and a makeshift shield of bark in the other. Was this... Graza's cub? It raised its little hands and gave out a roar that was more like a meow, and Link just couldn't help but smile.

"Aw!" The little Lynel squeaked out, "No smile, scared! Scare porsen, poosin, pur-per-pa... scare you!"

"No, no, I'm scared." It wasn't easy to not laugh, "What person wouldn't be afraid of you?"

The cub jumped back with a squeak, dropping it's toy weapon, "Talk, talk! You talk! What? Pur-sin don't talk! Just make mouse roars!"

He assumed it was talking about screaming, "My mom taught me how. Where's your mom?"

"Mama find big rock! Stuff in it to make things! Someday Vakiji find big rock and make real sword! But right now Vakiji on quest!"

"Oh really? What kind of quest?"

"Mama told Vakiji to wake up friend. Name Link! But Vakiji just find pur-sin. No other Lynels!"

Link couldn't help but chuckle a bit, "Actually, that's my name. I'm Link."

Vakiji stared at him as if he'd just said that the sky was purple, "Uh.... what? You, Mama friend?... Huh?"

"She's been teaching me. Your mom is really strong-"

"Yeah!" The little Lynel interrupted him, holding his fists to his chest with a proud look, "Mama the strongest ever! Mama beat up anything! Vakiji wanna be just like Mama when get big! Then Vakiji can help Mama look for Papa!"

Link cocked his head at that, having just assumed that Vakiji's father had been staying wherever Graza slept. Though before he could ask more, he heard familiar laughing and looked over to see Graza herself returning, hefting a massive lump of iron.

"Ah, I see he managed to find you." She said as she approached, dropping the ore down nearby, "I hope my little one hasn't been too much trouble."

"Vakiji no trouble!"

Link smiled, "No, he's been great company, actually. Uhm... can I ask what that's for?" He gestured to the metal.

"Of course. I'm planning on having some weapons made from it, mainly a spear and a bow. If you're going to train like a Lynel, you should really have the proper weapons for it. Until we work your muscles up to handle heavier Lynel weapons, a spear should be just fine." She fixed him with a pointed look that stopped him from speaking for a moment, "And before you argue that you could handle heavier ones already, let's remember how hard it was for you to try swinging my club around."

"I managed to lift it though!" He almost flinched as he realized how childish he sounded saying that.

"That you did, but you still aren't ready just yet. I'm sure your time will come. For now though, I think it's time for you to return to your home. It's a bit of a journey for me to make it to the ironworker's, and it's a closely guarded secret of my kind. Maybe someday I can take you there, but today just isn't that day."

Link deflated a bit, "Oh. Alright. How long until I should come back?"

"It's about five days there and back, and it will probably take a day or two at least for the weapons to be forged. I would say twelve days, to give us time to return and get settled again."

"Twelve days, understood." Despite his tone, he was honestly sad to hear that they'd be gone for so very long.

And it seemed that Graza noticed, "Don't be so down, Link, it's not even a fortnight. Though, I must admit, it's nice to know you'll be missing me." She smiled at him, and again he wondered how Hylians could consider anyone like her to be a beast, "While we're gone, practice your skills. You have a lot of natural talent, so don't get rusty on me. Particularly focus on your archery, understood?"

"I do. I guess I'll see you in twelve days then."

"That you will." She first picked up Vakiji, and placed him on her back, then grabbed up the lump of iron, "We'll see you then, little warrior."

They turned away from each other, Link heading back the way he'd come, and Graza heading north through the valley. He already felt lonely, and hadn't realized how much he'd missed company. Instead of focus on that, he just focused on getting back to the jungle. Back to his home, the place he knew he belonged. No matter how empty it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot what day it was and so this chapter is a tiny bit late. Also, I'm sorry if this was kind of a lackluster chapter it's... been quite a week.


	4. Chapter 4

Link snarled low in his throat, a feral noise that sounded far more like it came from a beast than from a tiny person. The Moblin, black skinned and much stronger than many others of its kind, roared back at him as if it could intimidated him, and it charged with its spear. He dodged it effortlessly, and began to lash out with the merciless, barbed steel of the Mighty Lynel Sword he held. This moment of time slowing for him had become as familiar as the sounds of prey in the underbrush or the babbling of the slow jungle river. And he knew how to use it to cut down his opponents effectively. He felt the adrenaline wearing off and jumped back before time rushed back to its normal pace. But the Moblin didn't attempt attacking him again, succumbing to its wounds and crumpling to a large heap before him. Just like the other three before it. He huffed and returned his sword and bladed shield to their place behind his back, and turned at the sound of clapping.

Graza was approaching, and clearly he had passed her test by the look of pride in her face, "You have far exceed all my expectations, Link."

He smiled, his body relaxing a bit, "Thanks. But I was just doing what you taught me to do."

"Oh you can brag, I know you can." She teased lightly, "In all seriousness, I'm extremely proud of all the progress you've made. You've grown so much."

That he had. In the two years he'd spent in a the jungle and on the plains, he'd grown strong. The soft, half Hylian who'd stumbled upon his ancestors ancient home was all but a memory. He was lean and muscular, able to wield even Graza's heavy club without issue. He could climb the tall palms of the jungle in mere moments, and could easily leap from one to another to rush through the treetops. He'd learned how to scale the cliffs and crags of his home with precision and confidence, even in the ever so frequent rain and thunderstorms of the jungle. He'd even managed to figure out how to communicate (somewhat) with the Lizalfo tribe, and had convinced them to teach him better ways of swimming and fishing, though he could probably never keep up with the half aquatic creatures.

His new strength came with a new look as well. His hair had grown long, and he mostly kept it in a pony tail, using a sword to cut it if it ever became too long. His old clothes were forgotten, tucked away in his home as a part of his bedding, replaced with sturdy leather and soft animal furs, with which he'd nearly finally completed the warrior's garb his mother had shown him so long ago. Purple body paint that Graza had helped him mix up stood out harshly on his skin, giving him an all the more wild appearance. All he needed now was the skull headdress, and the look would be complete. He wondered is his mother would be proud of him....

He blinked a couple of times and wiped his eyes, and Graza softened more. She could immediately tell whenever he was thinking about his mother, and she always seemed to know what to say, "I think she would smile at how far you've come, little dragon."

"Aah...!" He wiped away the tears that were attempting to form with a weak chuckle. Ever since he'd told Graza about his mother, she'd begun occasionally calling him 'little dragon', and it was the quickest way to cause him to either tear up or get lost in nostalgia. Both of which were distractions from his training, but welcome ones that let him actually rest when his mind would otherwise be stuck on fighting. "I just defeated a Moblin and I'm crying like a newborn, look at me...."

Graza chuckled and placed her hand on his shoulder, "You are allowed to shed a few tears, there's no rule against it. It's better to let it out anyway. Any container can fill up, and it's not good to risk a burst, now is it?"

"I guess not." He sighed a bit, "Well... what's next?"

"Nothing."

He blinked, confused, and cocked his head, "Wait... nothing?"

"I have nothing left to teach you. You've faced every test I've set for you, bested me in a spar, and even defeated this final, unexpected challenge. Your training is complete."

"Oh." He... didn't know how to feel about that. Of course he was excited that he'd finally completed his goal, but... he was so used to Vakiji and Graza. He'd miss them.... "That's great to hear. I'm finally a worthy warrior."

She watched him for a moment, then grinned, "And you're always welcome here on the plains. You're practically family."

His mood lifted immediately, and he ran to her and caught her in a hug, which was mostly just around one of her forelegs due to their difference in size. Again she had known exactly what to say to make him at ease. She rubbed his back with a hum, and he simply whispered out a "Thank you."

"No thanks are needed. I would miss seeing you so often! And Vakiji sees you as the older brother he's always wanted. Now," she pulled back to look at him and raised an eyebrow, "what do you plan on doing now?"

He let go of her and looked to the east, expression hardening, "... I want to head back to Hateno. It's a Hylian village. My little sister is there, and... and so is my father. I've thought about her every day. She doesn't deserve to live under his thumb, because I know how he is and...." He shook his head, looking up at Graza with a determined expression, "I can take care of her now, protect her. She can be free too, and she deserves to at least have the option. Right?"

Graza nodded, "I completely agree with you. If she chooses to come with you, please, bring her here. I'd love to meet her."

He smiled and nodded, "Absolutely. It's a long way there, it'll probably be a bit more than a week to get there, get back here, and get her settled in if she comes along. Maybe ten days? Eleven at most. If it takes any longer than that, something went wrong."

"I highly doubt you'll run into any trouble you can't handle. Take care on your journey, Link, we'll be waiting for you."

Link nodded and said his goodbyes, then began his way back to his home to prepare for the journey to Hateno Village. It had once been a rough journey, long ago when he'd begun all of this, but now he doubted he would have any difficulty making it there. The trek back, his sister in tow, would be a bit longer, as he wouldn't be able to simply climb over the mountains in his way like a goat. So, he packed extra food and a few clay jugs of water for the both of them in a pack.

Then came to the issue of weapons. He frowned heavily as he looked at his Lynel made equipment, thinking long and hard about it. Of course he wanted to bring it along, they were some of his most prized possessions, and there could very well be fights along the way... but his sister had always been skittish, and the last thing he wanted to do was frighten her with the fierce weapons. He'd already probably give her a bit of a scare with his new outfit. In the end, he chose to leave those weapons at home, opting for an easily hidden Lizal Boomerang instead. It would easily deal with the stray Bokoblins that would probably be his only obstacles.

He left near midday, trying to time it so most of the time he'd be out in the open would be under the cover of dark. As he'd expected, it wasn't hard to make it to the town he'd been born into, and... he had to admit, it brought back memories. Not all of them happy ones. He'd approached over the cliffs, and he could see his childhood home below him, alone across the river on a peaceful little outcropping. Honestly, a home he would have loved had it not been tainted by bitter memories. Link hesitated, then looked past the houses and fields. He had a bit more time before his father would be asleep. Just enough time to go visit someone and be back.

He went the long way around, through the woods bordering the town. The cliffs were simple to climb, and by now he knew he was out of sight of any prying eyes. Any guards posted at the gates would be asleep sitting in a chair there as usual, and no one would be this far outside the village this late at night. Approaching the village graveyard was surprisingly difficult for him to make himself do, some deep rooted fear telling him to avoid this place of death. But he entered anyway, trying to keep from shivering. He was a warrior for goddess' sake! He shouldn't be so uncomfortable in a simple graveyard! A crow cawing made him jump, and he scowled at the bird that seemed to laugh at him.

He froze in front of a headstone after very little searching. His mother's... he hadn't ever actually seen the stone before. He'd left for his house, carrying his sister with him, long before the funeral had even concluded, something he'd gotten an earful for when his father had returned home. He just couldn't stand there and watch his father help bury her, when he clearly couldn't have cared less. He sighed a bit and kneeled down, putting a hand on the stone and running his thumb over the inscription.

"... Hi Mama...." He said, before clearing his throat and feeling a bit ashamed of how weak his voice sounded. But, he figured if there was anyone who would never mind him showing a bit of weakness, it was her, "I... I'm sorry I haven't visited... though I guess if you're anywhere, it's probably not here. Ugh, I don't know what I'm even saying...." He never had been good with words. He usually chose to stay silent instead, and just let his actions speak for him. "I just... I just want you to know that I'm okay. And that I'm coming to take Aria back home with me. I'll teach her just like you taught me, Mama. I'll take care of her, I promise. We'll be okay."

He stayed there for a long moment, on his knees in front of his mother's headstone, the cool night air a bit too frigid after how acclimated he'd become to the heat of the jungle. Finally, he stood up, gave one last nod to the grave, then headed back for his old house. It was late enough, his father had to be asleep by now. He reached the house quickly and began his plan.

He climbed up to the upper window, the same one he'd escaped out of so long ago. He and his sister had slept on the top floor, while his father and mother had been below, which made escape a bit more difficult. His father was not a heavy sleeper. He pressed one hand against the window, still loose, good. He pushed the glass until it there was a big enough opening for him to get his fingers around the edge, and he wiggled it out of place. Admittedly, holding onto a heavy pane of glass with one hand, while keeping himself from falling back to the ground was not an easy task. So, he let himself fall as quietly as he could, and set the glass down before climbing back up again. He listened for the heavy snores his father made, nodding when he heard the obnoxious rumble. How he'd ever been able to sleep in here was beyond him. He climbed inside, making sure to use his father's noise to mask his footsteps.

Aria laid on the bed they had once shared, and he frowned heavily at the sight of her. She hadn't grown much, and seemed thin and pale, and that worried him. He didn't believe his father would be so cruel as to deprive her of food, that was simply something he didn't do, and it was far more likely that she just... wasn't eating. He walked over to her cautiously, and gently shook her shoulder, whispering her name to try and wake her up. Which didn't take long, she was an even lighter sleeper than their father.

She blinked a few times, yawned, then half whined, half mumbled, "Too early... go back to sleep." It kind of hurt a little to hear her speaking Hylian.

"Wake up Aria." He continued to use the Zonai language, more out of habit than anything. "Come on."

It definitely caught her attention. She lifted her head up a bit, and actually opened her eyes. And she immediately went from still nearly asleep to fully awake, "... L... L-Link...?" He just smiled and nodded. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she immediately pulled him into a crushing hug, showing she was far stronger than she looked, "I-I don't...! Y-You're alive! Everyone... everyone said you were dead...."

He hugged her back, "I'm definitely not. I went home. To the place Mama always told us about. I'm... I'm so sorry I left you behind.... I wasn't strong enough back then. But I am now. I want to take you home."

She pulled back and looked at him, confused, "... The place Mom came from? It wasn't just a story?"

"No, it's real! I live there. And I've made some friends. I can't wait for you to meet Graza and Vakiji. Especially Vakiji, you two are going to be friends in no time." He laughed quietly, and ruffled her hair, "He's as hardheaded as you are."

That had been a mistake. Because she had immediately giggled and let out an indignant "Hey!" Then she covered her mouth. That was loud. They both tensed up and held their breath as their father's snores faultered, only letting it out when the noise resumed. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, he's still asleep. Come on, let's get going!"

He moved towards the window and held his hand out for her with a smile. But she didn't move. "... Just... Just up and leave? Just like that? And go someplace I don't know at all? Brother, I... I dunno if I can do that...."

"Well... sure you can! It's okay, I'll take care of you! And I can teach you, it'll be great! It'll be just like when we made forts in the woods."

"When we did that, we came home for dinner." She began to wring her hands, nervously, "I-I... I'm scared... and... and Dad...."

He frowned, "That man? What about him? I don't think he cares about anyone."

"... He went looking for you." That made Link pause, "When you left. He looked for you. Spent the whole day out looking. He... he's still our dad, brother! I don't wanna abandon him!"

Link lowered his head a bit. His father... had been worried? Why? He'd spent his entire childhood hurting because of that man, why had he looked for him? He didn't know. He reached up to scratch the back of his head, and the bones on his arm guard caught on a picture frame. He hadn't even had time to pull himself out of his thoughts and register what was happening before the picture fell to the floor, the glass shattering loudly.

Link flinched as the snores abruptly ended with a snort, "Huh? Aria? What are you doing up there?" And then the sound of approaching footsteps.

Two thoughts immediately clashed in his head. Option one, get out of there. Now. Just run like there's no tomorrow and never look back. That one seemed so easy, and like the right decision, but there came the complications of his sister. He didn't want to just leave her again, and there was the all but certain fact that she'd tell their father that he was alive. And if she did, and he really did care enough to have search for him before, it was possible he'd search again. The end result seemed messy and painful for all parties involved.

The other option sounded more unappealing than rotten, putrid fish left out in the sun for a week, and that was to wait, and talk to his father. What would he even say? 'Hi pops, it's your son! Yeah, you know the one, the one that vanished into thin air right after you buried your wife? Yeah, I'm good and trying to take your daughter away from you.' There... really didn't seem to be a way he could phrase that to have him in a good light when he thought about it from that perspective. Really, he was choosing between beginning mess and ending mess, and which seemed less horrible.

He decided to stand up tall and strong. He was grown now, pretty much! He shouldn't be afraid of his father of all things! Besides, he'd been able to best Graza in battle. If things got rough, a Hylian was nothing he couldn't handle. Or at least that's how he'd felt until his father reached the top of the stairs and stared at him. The anger in his eyes and his complete silence was unnerving, and Link found himself taking a step backwards to try and get closer to the window. Okay. So option one was better. That would have been nice to know.

He was about to say something, explain himself, say hello, just something to break the silence, when his father did it for him, by taking a deep breath and yelling at the top of his lungs, "ZONAI RAID!"

Link jumped, having not expected that, and stared at his father for a moment. Raid?? This wasn't a raid! The sound of a bell ringing somewhere in the distance helped him unfreeze. He turned and jumped out of the window, hearing his father rushing down the stairs, and his sister begging them to stop and talk. He didn't plan on trying that. He began to run, following the cliff face. Getting away shouldn't be too hard. His father was the only actual fighter, all the other people were just farmers. He was about to round the cliff and be out of sight when he felt it. A sharp nick on the exposed flesh of his upper arm. It stung, but that wasn't the part that bothered him. What did was the tingling burn that spread through his body like a lightning strike, making all his muscles contract painfully. He found himself falling to his knees as he tried desperately to regain control of his body, even if only to breath. The paralysis from the Shock Arrow only lasted a few seconds, but it was agony, and unlike anything he'd ever felt before. By the time he was able to move of his own volition again, he realized he was tumbling off the side of the cliff, and scrambled to stop himself and get to his feet. Another Shock Arrow buried itself in the ground in front of him, and he decided to drop off the cliff instead of endure that pain again.

He fell, rolling as he hit the ground below, and all but tripped over himself as he rushed to press himself against the cliff face, knowing the slight incline of the rock would protect him from whoever was shooting at him from up there... who he could only assume was his own father. But then he heard more people running, and looked to find two fully armored soldiers running towards him from the gate, along with the regular guards from the town. His heart dropped, what were soldiers doing here?! It's a backwoods farming village out in the middle of nowhere! He couldn't stay still, he had to run.

Link bolted for the tree line, his heart pounding frantically. Everything was a mess, all of it. He wasn't even thinking anymore, just running as fast as his legs could take him. He didn't make it far, tumbling over himself as he was hit by another of those damned Shock Arrows, this time directly in the shoulder. If being grazed by one was agony, a direct hit was complete, unholy torture. He couldn't even scream, his throat tight. The only good thing about this arrow was that it burst and vanished instead of embedding into his skin. By the time the electricity finally lessened, he felt himself be grabbed and picked up roughly. He immediately struggled against the person grabbing him, letting out as fierce of a battle cry as he could in an attempt to intimidate them. They locked their arm around his throat, and he noticed it wasn't a soldier since no armor glinted at him.

He used his only option. He grabbed the arm and pulled down, though he couldn't work up his usual strength after those two massive shocks. So instead, he bared his teeth and bit down, growling instinctively. The person yelled and tried to hit him without letting go, and he just bit down even harder. He tasted blood in his mouth and grimaced, but refused to release, instead just starting to shake his head like a wolf tearing it's prey apart. With a scream, the person let go of him, and he immediately released and began to try and escape again, but he was surrounded.

In his desperation to get out of the first person's grip, he hadn't noticed the other three catching up to them. And the yellow glint on top of the cliff didn't escape his attention. He looked around, and he knew he must have looked like a cornered, wild animal, what with his growl still rumbling low in his throat, and the blood dripping from his mouth down his chin. He couldn't see any possible routes of escape. He couldn't run without fighting through these soldiers. If he reached for his weapon to do that, he would be shot by another Shock Arrow, and the very thought of that made him ready to curl into a ball and give up. His shoulder and side burned, and he was trembling slightly from the after effects of the electricity. He was beaten and he knew it.

So why he yelled and struggled when another one of them grabbed him, he wasn't quite sure. He tried bashing the bones on his arm guard against his captor, but all he banged against was hard metal. It was a soldier who had him. He was hoisted off the ground, kicking and screaming and probably waking up every single one of the townsfolk, and carried into Hateno Village. He heard gasps and murmurs, and eventually heard his captor say something he didn't catch over his own yelling. So he quieted to growling, straining to hear what they were planning on doing to him.

"You can use one of the silos! There'd be no way he'd get out of that."

"Yeah, and put a muzzle on him or something!" A quick glance confirmed that was the villager who had tried to grab him first, who was holding their bleeding arm, "That little monster can bite!"

It wasn't long before someone brought a cloth and some rope, and the other soldier was the one to work on tying the cloth around his mouth like a gag. He made sure to make it hard for them, squirming as much as he could and attempting to bite again, but failing. They tied his hands behind his back and shoved him roughly into one of the silos within the village. He tried to get up and get out before the door was closed, but he was too slow, and just ended up slamming his good shoulder against the hard wood. He kept pressed against the door, trying to learn anything he could. He was trapped and scared, and his heart was pounding so hard he almost believed it would escape his chest.

"What do we do with him?" Exactly what he wanted to know.

"We're going to go and get reinforcements from Fort Hateno. We'll transport him to the lock up in Hyrule Castle."

"No," His father.... "I'll send a report to the castle, take him to the coliseum. No reason to bother the king with one of these animals. Besides, he fights well enough that he might be worth some entertainment."

Link's eyes widened in horror. A coliseum? He... didn't know much about it honestly, just that it's where people were pitted against the most vicious monsters and creatures that could be captured and brought in. The people were volunteers, and were battling for fame, fortune and glory... usually. He was being sent there just to fight for his life. He slammed his shoulder against the door again and let out a muffled whine through his makeshift muzzle.

"Hey, Zannet, doesn't... this guy look a lot like your boy, though?"

His eyes snapped open and he stared at the door in hope. They would recognize him! Of course he knew they wouldn't be happy about him coming in this way, but they knew him! Maybe he had a chance? At this point, he'd hold onto any hope he could find.

"... It... did kinda sound like Link, didn't he? Kinda hard to tell but-"

"It's not my son." His heart sank like a rock in a river at that. "It's just some barbarian."

"Don't you want to take a look, just to make sure?"

"I saw him more than well enough while he was hovered there over my daughter's bed! My son died two years ago. This beast is no kin to me."

"Wait!" Aria! He hoped she hadn't seen anything he'd done.... "It's Link! He was just scared! Let him go, Papa!"

"Quiet! You're delusional. The shock of losing your mother and brother so quickly did a toll on you."

"No, it really is him! He just wanted to come see me! Papa pl-"

"I said quiet! Go back to bed, girl, now, before I lose my temper!"

Link's emotions quickly shifted through betrayal, hurt, and anger. Why was no one listening to his sister?! She was young, yes, but she was about as honest as they come! And did his father truly not recognize him? Or... or was this some sort of sick punishment for being like his mother? Link laid his head against the door, sliding down it as fatigue began to win out over dying adrenaline. He hurt all over from those accursed shocks, like he'd cramped up in every muscle in his body, and he simply didn't have anything left in him. He'd let his improvements go to his head, hadn't stopped to consider that maybe he wouldn't be one on one if he got into a fight. And he'd never even seen Shock Arrows in use before! This whole self appointed quest had ended in disaster, and he had no one to blame for it but himself. Now all he could do was imagine what he'd have to endure in the coliseum.

As the dread built up, he let his eyes slip closed, and whispered out, "I'm so sorry Graza. I don't think I'm coming home...."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all want some sad? Coming right up.


	5. Chapter 5

Link hadn't slept that night, or the one after that. How could he have? He didn't know when those soldiers would be arriving to drag him off to what he could only imagine would be hell, and being in such a small and enclosed space made it hard to breathe. No one had come to see him at all, curious children shooed away from the door and passerbys doing nothing except hurl insults occasionally. He couldn't even do anything. He'd tried multiple times to free himself from his bindings, and had eventually managed to tuck his legs in enough to get his arms in front of him and pull that cloth out of his mouth, but despite all his efforts, he couldn't find a way to snap the ropes. His pack and his boomerang were gone, torn off at some point in the fight with the guards, and there was nothing sharp or jagged enough in this silo to wear it down. Without the use of his hands, he couldn't climb to get out, and clearly he couldn't fight his way out, considering how he'd ended up in this situation in the first place. At this point, he was so desperate that he'd just been attempting to chew through it, which was a completely horrid experience, and he was half sure that he'd managed to yank one of his teeth loose with the fibers.

It was during one of these times of him fruitlessly trying to escape that the silo door opened up. Immediately he scrambled to his feet and pressed himself up against the furthest part of the wall he possibly could. There were three of them that he could see, and probably more where that came from, so there was no way he was fighting his way out if this. So he decided to try his next best option: Talking to them... which he was extremely angry at himself for not even considering it before. He'd just been too panicked to think straight.

"Please...." He begged, the Hylian words uncomfortable and unfamiliar to use. He was very rusty with what was technically his first language. He also realized that years of speaking Zonai and being with Graza had caused him to develop a sort of accent, and it was strange to hear. "Please let me go. I come to see my sister. Just that. Won't come back, ever."

Two of the soldiers looked at each other, possibly startled or confused, but the one in the doorway didn't have such reservations. He walked up to Link, grabbed him by the rope tying his hands, and roughly yanked him to his feet. He resisted, pulling back and struggling against the inevitable end again. He'd come to understand this gut reaction to fight back during his time in the silo. It was his survival instincts kicking into gear. His fight or flight response in its purest form. And he knew that no matter how beaten down or tired he became, he'd always fight to survive. Of course, it was about as effective now as it had been when he was first captured, and he faltered as he felt a hard thunk against the back of his head.

"Zannat was right, this kid is going to be a terror in the coliseum!" It made him sick to the stomach at how excited this soldier sounded, "It's about time we had some entertainment!"

"Hey, I've never heard a Zonai speak Hylian before... don't you think we should talk to him?" He he looked over at the soldier who'd said that, silently begging that they do that. "Besides, he's just a kid." Well, maybe his short stature might gain him some sympathy.

"And these damn barbarians are trained how to kill a man from the minute they can walk!"

Link growled at the soldier restraining him, "Liar!" He was struck again, and his vision swam, but he was determined to do anything he could. And right now, the only thing he could do was talk, "I kill monsters, not people! Just let me go! I won't hurt anyone!"

"Tell that to the man who has a hole in his arm from you. Animal!" He was being dragged away now, and he made that as difficult as possible for the soldier. "Stop your squirming already!"

He was about to be hit again when another soldier cut in, "Look, you don't want to beat all the fight out of him now, right? He's going to the coliseum after all."

"... Maybe you've got a point. Open up the wagon, it's time to get moving."

He was pulled into a carriage cart, his bindings tied to a hook in the wall to prevent him from moving almost at all. And to add insult to injury, they replaced the cloth with a true muzzle, one designed for a person, that pinned his jaw shut and was impossible to get off with his hands tied this way. He was alone in the covered wagon, and the bumping and rocking motions were making him sick. He fell into a fitful sleep only once, when he could no longer fight off his tiredness, but he guessed they'd been traveling for a day or two by the time he was unhooked and dragged out of the wagon.

The place he found himself in was dark, lit only by sparse torches, and made of some sort of rough, white stone. Prison cells went down in rows for as far as he could see, and he heard countless monster cries. Bokoblins, Moblins, Lizalfos, and many others that he didn't recognize. He was roughly shoved into one of the cells, and his bindings where grabbed and his hands were pulled through the opening in the bars as the door was closed and locked. Then, they cut the rope. His first action was to jerk away from the bars and tear that wretched muzzle off. His second was to press himself into the corner and glare daggers at his captors.

"You better rest up while you can." The cruel soldier laughed, "You're going to need it."

Yeah, like he was just going to be able to lay down and rest now. He had an easier time in the wagon. He looked around the cell they had him, it was small, and he felt like a wolf in a cage. He went to the door and shook it, testing it's give and finding almost none. He'd not really expected that to work in the first place though, given that this place houses monsters. He hummed in thought, then decided to try and squeeze through the bars. He was smaller and leaner than most any monster, so he may as well try. But the bars just weren't wide enough, and he couldn't get past his shoulder sticking out. He huffed in frustration and grabbed the bars tightly enough to make his knuckles white. He'd... he'd find a way out of here. Even though he felt like his hope was slowly draining, he refused to let it all go. He would make it out. He just needed to survive until he saw his chance. And, as much as he hated it, the soldier was right. He could only guess what they had in store for him, but he'd better be rested for it.

He was allowed to rest for two days, and had food and water brought to him three times. At first, he had almost considered something like a hunger strike, but that idea withered and faded almost as quickly as it had appeared. Then, on the third day, he was awoken by the sound of scraping metal. He'd quickly rolled out of his excuse for a sleeping mat and growled, something that was becoming more and more natural to him the longer he had to endure these people. A soldier was opening his cage, two others holding glinting, yellow tipped spears pointed at him. They looked disturbingly similar to Shock Arrows, and he didn't want anything to do with the business ends of them. So he didn't attack, and instead just slowly rose to his full height, glaring up at the three without lifting his head. The unarmed one jerked his head, and Link huffed, but left the cage, warily eyeing the electrical spears. Harnessing lightning and using it to control others... for some reason, it felt like a personal attack to him.

The spear holders stepped closer to him and he backed away, then looked over his shoulder. There was a doorway they clearly were pushing him towards. No sense fighting it, he'd just be jabbed and have the shock tear through him again, and then tossed in the arena. He'd be dead for sure then.

He turned and walked towards the exit, knowing full well this wasn't an escape. It couldn't be that easy. The door was opened by the first guard, and quickly slammed shut behind him as soon as he'd stepped through. Now he could hear it. People, so many people, all cheering. Cheering for the future bloodshed they were here to see. Between him and the arena was a thick, metal gate, sunlight streaming through it. What cruel irony... if only he had wings, he'd be able to escape in a moment. But instead, being out there would just be a tiny reminder of the freedom he once had.

The gate began to raise, and he hesitated for a moment. They'd make him move if he didn't on his own, he already knew that, so he didn't hang back for long. The actual arena made his stomach churn. All these high walls, a bastardization of his home, filled with people staring at him. A loud voice was announcing him, though he didn't hear the words over the blood rushing in his ears. He tore his eyes away from the sight and glanced around the perimeter. He noticed two weapon racks on opposite sides, filled with all manner of swords and shields, bows and arrows, spears, axes, hammers and everything in between. He took a few steps towards the rack to test the waters, and found no sort of assault coming his way, so he cleared the distance and started checking the weapons out.

The quality of them made him nervous. All but one of the spears were purposefully weakened with deep grooves, where they would splinter easily with little effort. Two of the swords were dull, with a third bearing nicks and chips along the cutting edge. Two of the bows were cracked along their surfaces and many arrows outright lacked fletching entirely. Whether or not this was purposeful to try and put him at a disadvantage, he couldn't say for sure, but he suspected it. He just grabbed the best of the bunch and got ready for whatever was going to come out the gates on the other side.

It was only minutes, long agonizing minutes, before the gate began to rise, and out stomped... a Lynel. Of course it had to be a Lynel. It was male, he knew that from Graza teaching him the subtle differences Lynels have, and his blue body was littered with scars of all shape and size. He glared down at Link, already armed with a Mighty Lynel sword and shield, similar to Link's own back home. The Lynel glared at him, though seemed to hesitate. Did he recognize the clothing? Link threw down his weapons. And that action seemed to surprise his would be opponent. The situation didn't matter, he would not kill a Lynel.

"I'm not going to fight you." He said the their shared language, using the more rugged, growled accent that Lynels have.

His opponent hardly lowered his weapons, "I believed the Zonai dead. You are truly one of them?"

"Yes. My mother was one, and taught me all she could while she had time. I've been living in the jungle, and I was taught by the Lynel of the grasslands near."

Now he seemed interested, his eyes widening, and he took a step towards Link, "Prove it. Say her name."

The intensity of his words gave Link pause, but he answered, "Graza. And she has a son, Vakiji."

"A son...." He faltered, shifting his weight as his weapons lowered more, "... She chose the name I wanted after all." He smiled and let out a huff of laughter, "Graza is my mate. That cub is my son."

Link jumped, "Really? That's you? I...."

"Please, if you have any mercy, tell me this. Does Graza believe I abandoned them?"

"No. She doesn't. She looked for you until Vakiji was born. She told me so. She thinks you're dead."

"... What is your name, Zonai?"

"Link."

"A hero's name. Do not look so shocked, all know that name is one of legend. I am Valkeer." Valkeer turned his eyes to the stands, where people were beginning to mumble and shout. "These people. They came to watch us attempt to slaughter the other."

"I will not fight you."

"Yes, you will." The Lynel fixed him with a stern look, "You will fight me. And if you learned from Graza well, you will kill me."

"I-!"

"Listen, hero. You will do this, because if we do not fight, we both die. I will not kill someone who will not fight back, especially my love's trainee. I will not hold back, boy, but you will defeat me." He closed his eyes, "I have no chance of escape. You, small and lithe, do. Death is the only way to escape this place for me. And it would be an honor to fall in battle against a worthy foe. But, before we get started, promise me something."

Link was frozen in place, processing all he'd just heard. Valkeer waited patiently for him, though, and finally, shakily, he said, "Y-Yes?"

"Promise me that when you do escape this place, you will let Graza know of my fate. That I fell in battle as a warrior, and that I remembered her to the very last breath. You do not have to tell her who it is who finally released me, but I know she would understand. She knows of hard decisions such as this."

Link was shaking now. He... he couldn't do this. Killing monsters, that's one thing. He couldn't murder Valkeer! And he absolutely couldn't have told Graza if he did! But... he knew he had very little choice. He couldn't just not fight, and kill them both however the Hylians would do so. And he couldn't lie if he promised. He clenched his fists. None of this was fair.... "I promise you."

"Thank you, hero. Now, pick up your weapons." Link did as he was told, not able to look Valkeer in the eye. "I will not hold back on you, boy. And I don't expect you to either."

"... I don't want to do this."

"... Neither do I."

Link took another moment to steel himself, then looked at Valkeer and nodded, getting into a fighting stance. Valkeer nodded back and assumed his own stance, one so similar to the one Graza used while they sparred. The people watching quieted their protests, realizing what they wanted to see was about to happen. There was a single moment of total silence, and then Link lunged, making the first move, or else he knew he would have never moved.

Valkeer shifted, swinging his brutal sword with a growl. Link did as he always did, he stopped short and back flipped away. He felt the familiar feeling of everything slowing down, and cursed it for the first time. Why couldn't it start up when he was fighting the people? Why didn't it happen when he was trying to escape? Why was dodging like this the only trigger? The trouble he was having with his cluttered thought made his quick burst of attacks sloppy. Brutal looking, but almost ineffective, most hits clanging off of Valkeer's armor without actually harming him. When time snapped back to reality, he heard cheering, and Valkeer looked surprised.

"Those moves...!"

"I can't focus!" Link growled, frustrated at himself, "My mind won't clear. I hate this!"

The Lynel shook his head, dropping whatever earlier thoughts he was having. "Sometimes you have to set your morality aside so you can survive, boy!" Valkeer was making a big show of circling him, giving them a short moment to talk, "You'll need to do much more killing in the future. You need to make yourself numb to it as soon as you can, or you'll drive yourself crazy! It's you or them, and you need to live! You have a promise to fulfil!"

He swung again, in the exact same way as before. He was giving Link another chance. Even now, a Lynel was teaching a Zonai... it was their calling, it seemed. This time, Link forced himself to stop think so much, and he lashed out with practiced expertise after his dodge.

Valkeer leapt back after time caught up, leaning a bit on his more uninjured side, "Graza... has taught you well."

"... She's a good teacher. What were you going to say before? About 'those moves'."

Valkeer banged his sword and shield together to look threatening, a show for the spectators, "Magic is in your veins, boy. Ancient, wild magic. That you did, your people called a flurry rush. Not all of them could do it, even less so on pure instinct. You hold secrets. Live and figure them out."

Link didn't have a chance to put together what he'd just been told, as Valkeer let out a roar that shook the arena. He knew better than to stay close. He bolted away just in time to avoid the fireball set off by the Lynel thrusting his sword into the ground. An opening. He ran towards Valkeer, and dug a single, quick swipe to the Lynel's less injured legs. Valkeer stumbled a bit, then growled and leapt back. Sword sheathed, Valkeer planted his claws into the ground and charged. Another dodge, another flurry rush. The battle went on like this for what felt like hours, but couldn't have been more than minutes, but Link was reaching his limit. He had to end this... as much as he hated what he needed to do.

He saw Valkeer taking a deep breath, preparing to spit balls of fire at him, and he threw his sword. The hilt clearly bashed against the Lynel's brow, knocking him silly for a moment and causing him to place a hand on the ground to steady himself. Link rushed forward, snatched up his weapon, and quickly clambered up onto Valkeer's back. Valkeer roared and began to buck, but Link held on. He stabbed into the Lynel's back over and over, before finally managing to plunge it into his shoulder. Valkeer reared back, throwing him off, then collapsed to his knees.

"Valkeer!" His stomach twisted, and he bolted over to the Lynel's side. He knew it could have only ended this way, but it didn't stop it from hurting.

"You... you are skilled." Valkeer chuckled weakly, hands on the ground to keep him upright, "You did well... thank you. For one last, true fight."

Link couldn't talk, finding himself completely speechless. He just slowly walked up to Valkeer, looking him in the eyes. Silently begging for forgiveness.

"You had better not... let this beat you. It would be completely shameful if you beat me... and then let yourself die to grief.... Take some of my mane. Give it to Vakiji. Tell him it was gift from me."

He swallowed, and forced his voice out, "I will.... He's red. And he's brave and strong and healthy. Stubborn as they come, but caring and fair. You have an amazing son...."

"... Thank you, Link." Valkeer smiled at him and nodded, "Sincerely... thank you...."

Link couldn't hear the cheers and applause as he watched the life slowly drain from Valkeer. He couldn't do much, no matter how badly he wanted to dig an appropriate grave for the warrior he knew so little, but he could make good on his promise. So he pulled the sword from Valkeer's back and cut a long lock of mane off, which he tied beneath the bone guard on his arm. He did hear the gates though, and his gaze drifted over to it. The soldier was there, motioning for him to enter.

He felt rage bubbling up. Valkeer didn't need to die. He didn't have to be a murderer. This place didn't need to exist. But these Hylians.... He snarled and stood, glaring daggers at the soldier. It took everything he had to not run for him and attack, but he knew that likely wouldn't end with him alive. So, he did his best to contain his anger and walked through the gate, through the door, and back into his cage. As the door was closed behind him, he knew that they wouldn't get away with this. These soldiers, everyone responsible for this hellish place, they would all pay for this. His hands balled into fists, and a low growl began to rise in his throat. He could feel himself trembling. All these monster's cries, it was too loud, he wanted them to shut up already!

One of the soldiers suddenly tapped on his cage bars with a laugh, saying "Looks like you really can fight! I made good money betting on you, kid!" and that was it. He'd had enough. He whipped around to face the soldier, and they stumbled back. He could feel a tingle across his skin like the slightest shock, but he barely registered it. He just followed his instincts. And his instincts told him to yell. But what came out was a wordless, inhuman roar that sent the soldier fleeing. When he snapped his teeth together to cut off the sound, he found that the area had been plunged into silence, the monsters quieted by whatever he'd just done. He didn't stop to question it, instead collapsing onto his pallet, too exhausted in every way to keep going any longer.


	6. Chapter 6

How long had he even been here? A month? A year? Two? He could no longer remember. There was no structure to his days. Some days he fought once, some days two, sometimes full hoards of monsters. Rarely, he was left alone for a while. Occasionally the fights were at night, and twice he had to battle during a storm. He'd gathered a collection of nicks and scars in this place, including a harsh, red, branching line across his left side from one of the electrical spears the guards carried. Which had felt far worse than any Shock Arrow had ever thought of being. At least Shock Arrows burst on contact and didn't pierce flesh.

The guards at least now left him alone. After the roar that had somehow come out of him, many avoided him, something he was thankful for. He had no need for any of them, refusing to speak to a single one. Those that had continued to harass him soon stopped, after he'd managed to get a hold of one of them through the bars. He hadn't even been thinking, so furious that he'd just wanted to cause harm to someone deserving, and he'd grabbed the guard's arm and yanked to slam him against the bars repeatedly. He hadn't stopped until another guard had come along and used that damn Thunderspear on him. He took a bit of guilty pleasure from the fact that the guard he'd attacked hadn't returned for many days.

In his downtime, which nothing but dim lights and silence occasionally broken by a chorus of monster cries, his mind tended to wander. He tried to not think of home. Of Graza and Vakiji, who had to have known that something horrible happened to him... he wondered if they thought he was dead. Even more so, he tried not to think of his father and Aria. Was she doing okay? Did he regret sending his only son to this hell? Why had he done this of all things he could have done? It hurt him to think about any of it, and he ached enough without those kinds of injuries.

He lifted his head at the sound of metal on stone, watching bitterly as his cage was opened yet again. He didn't hesitate anymore, just standing and heading for the arena without much of a fuss. He wasn't in the mood for these guards, and the quicker he could get this over with, the better. He did take note of the change in their armor, which now was far more bulky and covered even more of their body than usual. It definitely didn't look Hylian made. Strange... he didn't like this change. Change was never good in this place.

The crowd seemed far quieter this time as he stepped into the sunlight, and he narrowed his eyes a bit at the odd glint that mixed with the mesh fencing. Glass? The crowd was muffled behind a thick layer of glass. That was new... it unnerved him even more than the armor. Apparently, whatever he was facing today required them to take extra safety measures. Well, he definitely didn't want to be just standing out in the open when whatever was going to attack came out, so he rushed to a weapon rack, the only one laid out today, and crouched behind it. What could possibly require this amount of extra protection? Even facing Hinoxes and Taluses, these kinds of precautions had never been taken. And why was it taking so very long for the gates to be lifted? He swallowed past the lump in his throat, a cold chill running down his spine. Whatever was behind that door, he knew it was lethal. Now they were just openly trying to get him killed, it seemed.

The other gate finally began to open, and immediately a massive head bashed it's way out of it. His heart dropped to his stomach when he saw it. A dragon, many multiple times his size, it's bulk barely fitting through the opening. It was huge, and it's plated body looked almost like stone. Glowing blue circles and other markings littered it's body, which was squat and low to the ground. It had a head like a salamander, and it's massive claws were wreathed in flame. It's tail ended in a hard, hammer like club, which was held down with heavy chains. The reason for these chains became clear as it spread its wings with an earth shaking roar.

Link gasped as he felt everything slow down. What? How had it triggered this time, without dodging? He tried to shake off his questionings, and focused on observing his surroundings and trying to find a way out of this alive. Swords, not much help unless he wanted to help it pick it's teeth when it was done with him. Shield, maybe could help protect him from a blast of fire? Though honestly, it might just end up a melted hunk of useless metal by the end of it. Spear, he had a feeling those plates would prevent anything like a spear stab from cause damage. Hammer? Maybe, if he could get on it. Though it was also possible that any blow would just slide off it's protective, natural armor. Bow and arrows? Wait. He recognized those round tipped weapons. Bomb arrows. Those could do some damage, maybe he had a chance. But, as he glanced at the chain holding the dragon down, he began to formulate a different kind of plan. It was partially melted in places, probably from the dragon trying to free itself. A good couple of blasts might break it. And would the dragon really be interested in attacking him if it was free to leave?

As time began to return to normal, his eyes narrowed. This was it, his chance! He leapt out of his hiding place as the dragon roared again, spitting a jet of searing, blue fire towards the crowd. He grabbed the nearest bow and quiver, and nocked an arrow as quickly as he could, striking it to ready the bomb. The dragon seemed to have noticed the movement in the corner of it's eye, and began to turn it's head just as he loosed the arrow. It was a direct hit to the chain, which rattled loudly with the sound of metal scraping metal. The dragon jerked away from the blast a bit. It glanced at him, then the chain, and it seemed to recognize what was happening, since it didn't try to attack him. It was intelligent. It yanked it's tail, pulling the chain taut. The metal groaned at the strain, and Link readied another bomb. He could hear the people in the stands begin to scream, muffled by the glass, as he let the second arrow fly. This time, the stress was too much, and the weakened metal snapped.

The dragon stumbled forward a bit when the chain broke, then swept it's tail side to side a bit as if to test it's freedom. It let out a roar, one that sounded triumphant, and brutally swung the clubbed appendage against the wall, sending cracks flying across it as rubble fell. The spectators were evacuating, screaming wildly as they ran, but Link barely registered it. He had the bow hooked around him, and was running for the chain, something he could hold onto. The dragon was spreading it's wings, and he would not be left behind. He just barely managed to wrap his arms around the thick bar of metal before the dragon shot into the air with a mighty beat of its wings. The jerk hurt his shoulders, but he cheered and laughed as the wind rushed around him. He was getting out!

A loud blast below him drew his attention. A metal ball larger than his head whizzed past him. Cannons. He was jerked around as one slammed into the dragon's leg, knocking it a bit off course. It roared, a sound of fury instead of pain, and twisted to spit a fireball down towards the soldiers. Link wasn't going to be dead weight either. He shifted his grip on the chain and grabbed the bow, taking one of the few remaining Bomb Arrows and firing towards the other side of the coliseum. If he had anything to do with it, they wouldn't be stopped for anything.

The two blasts bought the dragon some time to rise a bit higher into the air, and then it began moving forwards. It was flying in an erratic pattern, letting out jets of flame as it rolled and twisted in the air, letting out loud bellows and noises comparable to barks. Celebrating, it was celebrating. But as much as Link could appreciate that sentiment, all this turning and jerking was making him motion sick and dizzy. He looked down and noticed a river below. From this height, he couldn't just drop down into it, he'd probably die. He used the bow to jab at the dragon's tail, trying to get it's attention. It seemed to work, as it stalled to hover in the air, and brought it's tail forward and close to its face. He had to scramble to keep a hold of the chain and not be flipped upside down.

When the movement finally stopped, he waved at it, and it's eyes focused on him. Thankfully, it's expression didn't seem angry or frustrated, just curious. He cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Thank you!" First in his own language, then in Hylian hoping it understood either. Maybe it did, he didn't know. He pointed down towards the river, "I need down!"

It glanced down, then huffed out a puff of smoke and jerked it's head in something eerily similar to a nod. It's wing beats slowed, and it began to lower down towards the water. It slowly dropped it's tail down so he'd be closer, and he got ready to dive. Before he did, a crackle like breaking ice and a shrill blast came from above him, and the dragon let out a pained shriek. It jerked wildly, and he was thrown. He yelled in panic as he fell, but he did the only thing he could. He angled himself so he'd hit feet first, and just prayed to whatever gods or goddesses that might be listening that he'd hit water and not hard, unyielding earth.

He fell into the canyon instead of on the cliffs, and splashed down into the river at the bottom. The height had made the entry into the water painful, like a full body slap that left him dazed and stinging with the breath knocked out of him. He broke the surface and gasped for air, before looking up to see if the dragon was alright. It was rising higher into the sky to evade a volley of blue streaks, and there was ice clinging to its thigh. Ice Arrows? He supposed it made sense that a fire dragon would be weak to ice. It seemed like it would be fine as it turned for what he thought was the north east, so he focused on his own escape. He followed the river southward, or what he hoped was south. All he knew for certain was that he was heading down river. He could hear horse hooves and yelling from above him, so he made sure to stay close to the walls. He couldn't do much to fight back right now. It would be almost impossible to use a bow while drifting in a river, and the last of the Bomb Arrows were wet and currently all but worthless. He had to pass under a bridge at one point, which was about as nerve wracking as things could get, but he'd so far evaded being spotted.

He finally reached the end of the river, which was a small lake with rock spires jutting out of it, a bridge connecting them and the two cliffs together. Thankfully, this place was free of soldiers for now. He wasn't sure why, but he couldn't see any sign of them, and so it seemed to be safe. There was a small outcropping of land low to the water, and he dragged himself out onto it and flopped down, sprawled out on the dirt. He needed to both catch his breath and get his bearings. Okay, he knew he'd gone south now. The coliseum was south of the castle, if he remembered correctly, and he'd never passed the castle. So if he went to the cliffside opposite where he'd entered from and climbed up higher, he might catch sight of the lake, or maybe Graza's plains.

He was so close. He laughed weakly to himself and grabbed a fistful of grass and dirt. It'd been so long since he'd seen grass. He closed his eyes and sighed, and he'd have happily slept right there. But he knew he still wasn't safe. Soldiers could come across him at any point, and he'd rather die than be taken back to that place again. He wouldn't be truly free until he managed to get home. So, even as tired as he was, he forced himself to get up, and set his sights on the cliff ahead.

He dove into the water and began to swim across, mentally thanking the Lizalfo tribe for their teachings. He'd have never managed to swim this far without having trained with them. He reached and scaled the cliff, briefly stopping at the top to shake himself to get a bit of water off. He was just about to head for the cliffs that he was certain would show him the way home, when an arrow planted itself in the dirt at his feet. He immediately turned to look in the direction it came from, and snarled. A soldier, all alone on the bridge except for a horse, and aiming a bow at him. At least these were basic arrows, and he had no fear dealing with these.

"Freeze!" The soldier commanded, voice wavering. They were afraid of him. Good. "Don't you move! Stay right there!"

Link planned to do no such thing, and he plucked the arrow from the dirt. The soldier shot another at him, but they either were a beginner or didn't actually want to hurt him, because the arrow landed about three paces to his left. He looked over at it, then glanced at the Hylian. He huffed, walked over, and collected that one as well.

"Do you really want to do this?" He asked, wanting to smirk when the soldier jumped in surprise, "Because I can. I've wanted to go one on one with guards for a while now. But if you want to keep using your legs, you leave."

"I...! I am a k-knight for the kingdom of Hyrule! And it's my job to bring you in!"

Honestly, this guard reminded him a lot of himself... it made him want to go easy on them. They were just doing what they were ordered to do. They thought they were on the right side of thus situation, probably. But Valkeer's words echoed in his mind: 'Sometimes you have to set your morality aside so you can survive, boy! It's you or them, and you need to live!' If he just let this person go, and they told others where they'd seen him, could they track him? Would they be able to find their way to Graza's plains? He couldn't put those two at risk, never. He'd never let them share Valkeer's fate. He hardened his gaze, glaring at the guard, and tried one last time, "If I fight you, I will kill you. Leave me alone. Last chance."

The knight seemed to hesitate, maybe think through their options, then they decided and pulled the bowstring taut. So that was their choice... Link sighed, then glared. So be it. He easily dodged the arrow, which otherwise would have hit his leg. He rushed forward and the soldier yelped and hastily drew their sword. He grabbed that arm and twisted until they yelled and the grip on their sword lessened. He knocked it from their grasp, scowling a bit as it tumbled down into the ravine. He jumped back as the knight started to throw punches at him. A metal fist to the face sounded awful. The knight tried to run, but he'd given them ample warnings and they hadn't listened earlier, so he didn't plan on letting them go now. He tackled them, knocking them to the ground, and pinned them with his knees on their back. They began to scream as he yanked off their helmet and grabbed their head. A quick twist, and the sounds of cracking bones, and it was done. Just like killing a goat.

He let go and got off the knight, swallowing past a hard lump in his throat. He felt like he was going to be sick. He hadn't wanted to do that, but the soldier had given him little choice... he also didn't like how easily that had been done. He looked up at the sounds of hooves, and frowned at the horse, which was nervously clomping about. If any more knights came along, they'd know which way he went. He needed to cover his tracks. He took a breath to steady himself, then got to work on the messy business. He dragged the soldier's body over to the horse, then hefted them up onto its back. He tied them in place to keep them from slipping off, trying to avoid looking at their face. It... it just would be easier if he didn't. He grabbed the horse by the reins after gently calming it down, and turned it around. A pat on the rump sent it trotting off the way it came. With any luck, by the time it was discovered, the soldiers would have no idea which direction it had come from.

He stood there for a moment, watching the horse leave and unable to move. Valkeer's advice... was not pleasant to follow. He wasn't numb to what he'd done, and he was sure he wouldn't be getting over any of this any time soon. But right now, he couldn't waste any more time. He was almost home. He turned and bolted back towards the cliff face without the strange walls at the top, pulling himself up it as quickly as he could. Finally, he reached the top of the final rock face, and he looked down.

His breath hitched, and a smile slowly spread across his face. The dry, yellowed grass, the squat, strange trees. He was here... he screamed out a cheer that echoed through the canyon, throwing his fists in the air and jumping around in celebration. His little victory dance didn't last long, as he took off down the other side. He barley even climbed, more just jumping down and rolling if he knew that he could. The moment his feet hit the grass, he ran. Please be here, please, please just be here. He cupped his hands around his mouth and screamed their names, desperately hoping they could hear him.

And they could, because as he passed the odd, massive horse that made these plains it's home, he saw them, Graza running as quickly as she could with Vakiji on her back. He'd grown so much in Link's absence. The moment they reached each other, Graza swept him up into her arms in an all but crushing hug. He broke into tears, laughing weakly and he buried his face in her mane. He could hear Vakiji chattering excitedly, asking him question after question, but he didn't yet have the strength to answer. Everything he'd been through felt so far away, at least in that moment anyway. Later, he would tell them what happened, and he'd give Vakiji the piece of his father's mane. But for now, he just wanted to be held. Graza let out a soft laugh, and he felt tears of her own fall on his arm.

"Welcome home, little dragon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't want to linger in the coliseum too much, because though I love hurting the beloved boi, I don't wanna fully torture him. I could do a side story as an addendum to this, detailing some of the trials he went through in there, but that would be done later and only if people really want it.


	7. Chapter 7

"Why did it take so long for anyone to tell me about this anyway?!" Rhoam was furious. It was more than easy to tell that. "Did you all just decide not to inform me there was a Zonai just running around?!"

"Sir, we apologize. He was young, and we thought it would be unwise to bother you with something so... minor."

"'Minor'!? You all are imbeciles! Don't you pay attention?! And that dragon was to be placed in the new floor of the lockup, I gave that order specifically! Now both are gone!"

"W-We thought that we could get rid of one problem or another...."

"We needed them both alive!"

Zelda frowned, hidden behind a painting in one of the many hidden passages that littered the castle. She'd found many of them, as the structure of the castle had once greatly interested her. Now though, she found that her need to learn was currently focused on this issue with the Zonai. To have just vanished one day from sight, even with all their strength and magical prowess... it intrigued her. And with her father being so very vocal about this newly found and living member of the tribe, well. It definitely just made her more curious. And the secrecy only increased that ever further.

Why did he need the boy alive? And why had he ordered the capture of a dragon? If she wasn't wrong, it was the dragon of the Eldin Provence, one of four of its kind. Not to be mistaken with the spirit dragon said to also inhabit that region. Her research had not given her much information, as most they knew was from scattered tomes from ancient times, but what she had learned made Rhoam's decision to trap it even more ridiculous. It was a benevolent guardian of the land, born to protect Hyrule from evil along with it's three siblings. To capture it was insanity. And how, by goddess' name, had they managed to do that? Nothing was adding up, and it frustrated her to no end.

"Sir!" She jumped at that, worried for a moment that someone had discovered her somehow. But a quick look through the peephole of the painting reassured her of her safety here. Another knight had simply entered the study. "They've arrived!"

'They' who? Rhoam stood, obscuring her view a small bit, "Good, send them in."

The knight moved to the side, and Zelda's breath hitched when she saw the group who walked in. She recognized them, two very well, and the other two a bit more vaguely. One was her mother's closest friend, Urbosa. Chief of the Gerudo, and like a second mother to her. Another was Mipha, the Zora princess. They had always been close, friends since they both were very small. Both being princesses had practically forced them to get to know each other, she was just glad they got along so well. Then there was a Goron, Daruk. He was considered a hero among his kind, and he'd always been kind and friendly during their limited interactions. Lastly, a Rito, who she was fairly certain was named Revali. She... didn't know him personally, though his posture and expression made her think he was rather full of himself. She had only heard of his accomplishments, though they sounded rather blown out of proportion to her. What were they all doing here?

As if echoing her thoughts, Revali spoke up first with a bored tone, "So, is there any particular reason you bothered to drag me out here?" She had a feeling her suspicions about the Rito were going to quickly be confirmed.

"Yes, there is. I have gathered the four of you here today because you are the best warriors of your kind, your skills invaluable for the task at hand. We have a problem, a barbarian from the beast tribe that called themselves the Zonai. He was recently captured, but he escaped along with a dragon, killing many of our own in the process." He paused, as if to let the words settle, and Zelda frowned more at that. Injuries had been high, yes, but only one person had died during the incident, a knight with a broken neck. No death was small, but Rhoam was deliberately lying to blow things out of proportion. What was he playing at? The king continued, "We believe he has settled somewhere in the ruins of his kind." He waved, and a guard brought over a map to lay out on the table. Rhoam tapped on it over the jungles of Faron, "He is currently undefeated, having bested even our most powerful warriors in combat. On top of that, he has shown that he's capable of the dark magic the Zonai used on multiple occasions. He's a threat to everyone. I have no doubt you all have heard of the legends of the ancient calamity they caused."

Hm, she wasn't surprised he mentioned that. The ancient event where a black and red dragon had suddenly appeared, supposedly summoned by the tribe. It had ravaged the land, leaving nothing destruction and death in its wake, until an ancient, divine magic had sealed it away. But there were inconsistencies in the tales, like with all legends, and they were enough to make her suspicious of the known story. Plus, none of the books or scrolls were older than a certain period, around four hundred years ago, which made her wonder if the truth was buried further in the past, purposefully wiped away for some reason. She'd dug around, trying to find more information, but she had so far failed to find anything older to read, save for one. And that one, she couldn't read. It was in an odd, runic language she couldn't recognize, and she had been completely unsuccessful in deciphering it.

She shook herself from her thoughts before she missed too much of present events, and went back to watching in time to catch Daruk say, "None of us Gorons are real happy about what you did to the dragon, you know. It's been watching over us forever, it's not doing any harm."

"I understand your concerns," Zelda greatly doubted Rhoam did, honestly, "But try to see this from our perspective. That dragon has caused Death Mountain to erupt before, we have written accounts to prove it. It puts everyone at danger, even the Gorons. All it takes is one powerful eruption to wipe your city from the map."

Daruk scratched the back of his head and looked doubtful, but didn't speak. Urbosa, however, did, with sarcasm heavy in her tone, "I'm sure you meant nothing but the best, Rhoam, of course." She had never liked the king, Zelda knew that well. She wasn't really sure what had taken place between them, but it seemed personal. "So, the bottom line is you want us to take the fight to his domain. To go and fight someone you yourself claim is undefeated on his turf. Sure. And while we're at it, how about you and I go and spar in a sandstorm, one arm tied behind your back?" She frown heavily at him, her arms crossed, "You'd be a fool to think this can end well."

Mipha had her hands clasped together, and she had a worried expression. Her voice was soft as always, but there was an edge to it, "You said he's young... I have my doubts about fighting him."

Rhoam hardened, "Young or not, this barbarian is a bloodthirsty beast, and if you don't believe me, I can direct you to the people who survived their encounter with him. And I'm simply asking for his capture, not his death. He will face justice."

Mipha didn't respond, just taking a small step back. Daruk spoke up again, "I don't think a Goron would do too well in a jungle. All that rain and water would make the ground wet, and we'd sink into it. I dunno if I could even really get around in there."

Rhoam sighed harshly, then turned his head to look at Revali, "And you? Do you have some reason why you can't do this?"

Up until then, Revali had seemed barely interested, but now his eyes flicked between the other three and the king, "So. A warrior who had never been bested, deep in barely charted territory, and no one else is willing to go try and find him? It sounds like a fairy tale to me. Exaggerated and not worth my time." He crossed his wings behind his back and cocked his head. For a moment he was quiet, then he let out a drawn out sigh, "Oh but you seem so desperate. Fine, I'll go. Maybe there will be something there that is even the slightest challenge. Though I doubt it."

With a bit of a flourish, Revali made his way over to the balcony. He made a big show of throwing the doors open and stepping out, then crouched with his wings at his side. A small flick, and suddenly winds began whipping around him like a miniature cyclone. And with one flap, he was gone, rocketing into the sky on the sudden updraft. It was shocking to see, honestly. Zelda hadn't expected him to just create winds like that. She'd had limited contact with the Rito, but she knew that was something that none of the others had been able to do. Maybe the stories she'd heard were less exaggerated than she'd thought. That didn't stop the worry clawing at her gut. Something about this whole thing made her think Revali's chances were slim.

Zelda nodded with a fierce expression. Her father might not be willing to attempt diplomacy, but she didn't think capturing this Zonai was the right answer. And if none of this sat right with her, she would just have to do something about it! She ran through the secret passage, carefully exiting at the end to make sure no one spotted it. Getting ready to go would take some time. She would need to pack for a long journey, and then came the issue of actually getting out unseen. She just hoped that she'd be able to stop anything bad from happening.

* * *

Link had spent a long time with Graza and Vakiji. He'd slept for an entire day and a half, only barely rousing to take care of himself occasionally. But Graza had understood. She just let him rest and recover from his ordeal. When he'd finally woken up, he'd been starving, and even the two Lynels had been surprised by the sheer amount he'd eaten. Only then had he been ready to tell them what had happened.

He'd been careful, cutting out the more violent parts of his capture for Vakiji's sake. Then he had arrived at Valkeer.... He'd been unable to continue for a long while, but finally had managed to fulfil his promise. Though he couldn't bring himself to tell Graza that he had been the one to strike her mate down, he was certain she knew. But she wasn't angry. She had just pulled him into another hug, and thanked him for finally letting her know where Valkeer had been. Vakiji had been shocked to silence when Link gave him the lock of blue mane. The little cub had cried and pressed his cheek to the hair. Link wasn't sure whether it was good or bad until Vakiji thanked him. Graza had braided the lock into Vakiji's short mane.

"It's said that a strand of our ancestor's manes carries a blessing." She had said, "Their power becomes our own, their way to protect us even in death. That is why, when members of your tribe befriended us, we decided to begin giving you some of our manes for those helmets your warrior's wear. We wanted to protect our allies, even from afar." She had chuckled then, "And besides. It's much cooler when our manes are cut shorter. Someday... I plan to let you cut from my mane, to make your own helmet."

Link hadn't had the words to thank her. After all he'd told her, she was still more than happy for him to be near, for them to be friends. He was honored. He had stayed a bit longer, just soaking up the company he had missed so much, before finally heading for the jungle. He'd been gone a little over a year. He had a lot of work to do to clean everything back up.

As he entered the tree line of the broad leafed forest, he heard a quiet thunk, then a bursting crackle on the trunk he'd just passed behind. He immediately pressed himself to the opposite side, a snarl ripping from his throat. Had soldiers tracked him down? He knew what that sound was very well. A Shock Arrow, something he'd hoped was long behind him. He peeked out of his hiding spot, eyes narrowed as he tried to catch a glimpse of the soldiers. But they must have been behind the bend, because he didn't see anyone. And he hated not being able to see the threat. He glanced ahead, towards the jungle, and nodded. That was his best chance to get away from whoever was coming after him, whether it was one or many.

So he broke into a sprint, running as quickly as he could possibly manage, through the thickest areas of trees he could find. And yet somehow, in the maybe two seconds he was in the open area of the bridge, he was hit. It was a sharp pain in his back, but that wasn't his biggest concern. What was, were the winds that had immediately burst around him and hurled him into the air. What kind of arrow did that!? The slowdown occurred as he reached the peak of the wind's throw, and he twisted around in an attempt to spot his attacker. Nothing, no one in the trees, no gleam of sliver armor, nothing!.. except the shadow of a bird on the ground below him. An oddly shaped bird... one that... no. What? He glanced up, and spotted the creature. And it was exactly as he had disbelieved. A bird, with shiny, deep blue plumage that was easily the size of a person, and holding a large, intricate bow aimed right for him. He'd heard of Rito once or twice, but had never actually seen one before. And this one seemed intent on killing him, seeing as they were loosing three Shock Arrows on a perfect path to hit him.

But he had his magic, something the Rito clearly didn't know. As the arrows eventually reached him, he simply reached out and plucked them from the air, being careful to not touch the business ends. Time was starting to speed up again, so he made sure to angle himself so he could land and immediately take off for the jungle. Which is exactly what he did, time catching up as his feet touched the ground, and he heard a shocked squawk type noise come from his would be assassin. He didn't pause to give it another chance though. The heat and humidity of the jungle wrapped around him like a shroud as he passed into the dense underbrush, and he finally felt like he had the upper hand. He knew this place, it's temperament and it's landscape. He knew the heat created updrafts and storms, he'd felt them both countless times. That Rito wasn't going to have it easy, he was sure of it... so why did he still feel so uneasy?

His overconfidence had caused him suffering before, and he didn't plan on letting it happen again. So he kept low and hidden, sneaking his way through his own domain and hating every second of it. He had to find a way to make this bird flock home. He glanced down at the Shock Arrows he'd snagged, then smirked a bit. That would work. He put two of them away, then headed for the tallest tree on the highest point he dared to reach. He began to climb up, one arrow held in his mouth. He managed to reach the cover of the fronds without being attacked again, and carefully began to look for his foe. Ah, there they were, bow held in their talons as they circled smoothly above his home, seemingly unaffected by the change in the air. Seems he had good reason to worry after all. He pulled himself through the fronds to stand on the very top and whistled, which caused the Rito to stall a bit, and whip around to face him. He leapt just as they began to toss their bow up for use, and just as he suspected, the slowdown kicked in. He aimed with his own bow, frowning as he tried to adjust for distance and wind, and let the arrow fly. He knew he was no master archer, and so fired the second and third one as well. Then he closed his eyes, and tried to will time to speed up again. He didn't want to wait through it. For a moment, he couldn't do it, but eventually it seemed to follow his command, and he plummeted down beneath the canopy, only barely catching himself on a frond to keep him from falling all the way to the ground. He didn't see the result of his firing, but he heard it. The familiar exploding crackle as a Shock Arrow hit it's mark. It brought a smile to his face, one that quickly fell as he heard another hit, then a loud crash as something, and he could guess what, was shot out of the sky.

He panicked and quickly shimmied down the tree. He'd killed them! He hadn't meant to kill them, just scare them away! He'd had more than enough of killing people, he was NOT interested in making it a pattern! He rushed through the jungle, hurrying to try and find where the Rito had crash landed. Shouldn't be too hard, what with them being blue and white and yellow. It took him longer than he would have liked, but he finally found them, amidst scattered feathers most likely lost in their tumble through the canopy. He ran over and kneeled beside them, then sighed in relief. They were breathing, thank the gods. He could see where the arrows struck from the patches partially bald of feathers, one on their wing, another on their thigh. They'd probably have difficulty flying if they were anything like normal, animal birds, though considering they had no trouble circling above the jungle, he doubted they'd have too much difficulty getting out and back to wherever they came from.

But, just to make sure, he decided to help a bit. The Rito was heavier that he had expected, what with birds having hollow bones. Maybe Rito don't, how should he know? All he knew was that hefting the big bird up and out of his jungle was annoying and awkward, but he managed. Inside the broad leaf forest, he found a safe tree nook to deposit the unconscious bird, where they would be safe from monsters or wild animals. He had been tempted to take their bow, it was rather beautiful and expertly crafted to boot, but decided against it. He'd have gone rabid if someone stole his Lynel weapons from him, and he could only imagine the Rito would feel the same for the bow. Their quiver and arrows, however, were another story. He definitely took those. Maybe not having those would prevent them from trying to attack him again. And... perhaps more as a trophy than anything, he plucked a few feathers off their wings, planning to fletch some extra arrows with them. Can never have too many, after all! With his well won prizes, he headed back for the jungle, so so ready to finally get home.

* * *

Revali awoke with a groan, and his eyes cracked open slowly. He was alive? I-I mean of course he was alive! It would take more than that little cretin to kill the great Revali! Though... admittedly, he was extraordinarily sore, his wings aching as if he'd flown through a storm and gotten struck down by lightning. Two shocks in rapid succession would do that, he supposed. What he couldn't understand was how that... that BOY moved so quickly! In the blink of an eye, to just rip his shots from the sky like he'd done. It wasn't normal.

Also... why exactly was Revali still living, anyway? He wasn't complaining, of course, but it made no sense for the barbarian to have not killed him and eaten him or something. He glanced at his surroundings and noticed both that it was now night, and he was not in that strange, dense forest of alien trees. The boy had taken him here? All that effort... why? Laying here thinking about it wasn't going to answer his questions, though, and so he sat up. And immediately, upon seeing his wings, he let out an indignant squawk that he couldn't even bring himself to be ashamed of.

His feathers! His wonderful feathers, all but ruined! One wing was hardly damaged, but the other looked all but plucked! And, judging by the stinging, he had been plucked. That little monster! He'd stolen some of his feathers! How DARE he defile the legendary Rito warrior like this! Revali let his breath out in a hiss, and jumped down from the nook he'd been placed in (absolutely not wincing and stumbling on his injured leg, of course not). He was going to make that boy pay! He didn't need to fly to finish this job, he just needed his bow and... and... where was his quiver? He began to search for it, a disgusted grumble growing louder and louder. He'd stolen his feathers AND his quiver?! What heathen does something like that!?

"Oh this, this is not the end of this!" He declared loudly, "If I have to tear ever tree in this entire, goddess forsaken jungle from the ground, he won't get away with this! Oh he won't get away with this."

So angry and offended was Revali, that he stormed straight towards the jungle with no regard for his lack of ammunition. If he had to use his bow as a club and beat that little worm to death with it to soothe his wounded pride, he'd do it. Though... his senses did catch up to him as he reached the bridge. He remembered how the boy had moved so quickly and fluidly in the air, so much so that he'd seemed blurred around the edges... no. Focusing intensely to remember everything he could about his encounter with the tiny beast boy, Revali realized that he hadn't just seemed blurred. He actually had been. Both times where he had that unnatural speed and agility, he'd been blurred, eyes glowing an unnatural greenish color. Rhoam's warning about 'Zonai magic' came back to him, and he clacked his beak. Perhaps... he should wait, and try to make some sort of plan. Yes, yes that would be wise.

At the very least, he could rest his aching body and wait for the light of day. He looked around and nodded, heading for the thickest tree he could see. This would do for the night, no matter how demeaning it was to sleep in a tree like a common pigeon. He summoned his Gale, a far weaker version of what he would normally ride into the sky, and let it push him up to the top. He winced and hissed in pain from his injured wing, and knew from the awkward way the wind had caught it that he wouldn't be flying anytime soon. To be grounded like this, it made his blood boil, and he had to force himself to not leap back down and resume his earlier reckless stampede. It would be fine, he was certain. That boy had been lucky, the magic having slipped Revali's mind. Next time would be different. He nodded and settled himself down in as comfortable a position as he could find. Yes, very different. That barbarian wouldn't best him again. Absolutely not.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! A little note for this one! While in Link's POV, I've bolded his words, because he's speaking in the Zonai language, which Revali wouldn't understand. Revali is speaking Hylian, which Link _does_ understand, so yeah. So " **Things like this.** " is Zonai. Just wanted to make sure to make that clear because for once I actually had someone read part of this and they didn't understand at first. ^^;

Link frowned slightly in thought and cocked his head. He was lounging on his stomach on a branch far above the sleeping Rito, one arm crossed under his chin. Why were they still here? They couldn't have been so lost that they couldn't find their way out, right? He'd left them so close to the edge of the forest. Were they just so hard headed that they still planned to hunt him down? Well, without any real weapons, they were pretty much harmless, so if they wanted to try, he was willing to play this game.

He hummed a bit to himself, and took another bite of the banana he'd chosen to eat for breakfast... which, after over a year of slop, tasted like it was blessed by the goddess herself. Then he got an idea. It had been a long time since he'd had any real fun.... He pulled the last of the fruit from the peel, then held the peel out. He closed one eye, aimed, then dropped it. With a satisfying sound he would describe as a shlap, it landed perfectly on the Rito's beak.

They made a noise much like a caw, and woke up flailing their arms... wings? Wing arms. He couldn't help but laugh, covering his mouth with his hand to muffle the sound. It wasn't enough to prevent the Rito from hearing him though, and he heard a furious hiss of "You!" come from them. Judging by the voice, he'd guess they were male, but he couldn't be sure. He'd rather not be wrong and insult someone, even this would be captor. He opened his eyes in time to see the Rito stand, their brilliant green eyes narrowed at him. Ooh, they were maaaaaad.

"You little heathen!" They yelled at him, "Get down here and face me! I have a score to settle with you!" Link hummed and tapped his chin as if he were thinking over that, then shook his head. His amusement grew as the Rito's tone became all the more furious, "Don't you dare shake your head no at me!"

Link smirked just slightly and shook his head again. It was very fun to pick on this bird! And he didn't have to feel guilty in the slightest about it! After all, they were the one that had chosen to not go home after the loss. They deserved a little poking and proding. Besides, it wasn't like he was hurting them.

"You are the most insufferable creature I've ever had the displeasure to meet." The Rito hissed, "Congratulations, you've broken a record. Ugh, what am I doing wasting my time talking to you, you don't even know what I'm saying!"

Oh, so they didn't know he could speak Hylian, hmm? Well, he didn't plan on changing that soon. That sounded far more amusing. Instead, he just broke another banana off his bunch and peeled it. What better way to demonstrate how little the Rito's threats effected him than to eat and relax?

"Oh, now you're ignoring me. Don't you dare ignore me!" The Rito paused, as if waiting for some sort of response, one Link refused to give them. But then, as he went to take a bite of the fruit, he felt himself be suddenly lifted by intense winds, and scrambled to try to grab the branch. Which, didn't end up working, and he flew a bit into the air on the strong updraft, and came falling down, past the limbs, to land on the dirt below. He pushed himself up and shook his head, then cast a glance up to the Rito. They were chuckling with a smug look on their face... or at least he assumed that was smug. It was just a little difficult to tell with the beak. "Well, well, well, it seems you're a bit too eager to come down and face me, aren't you?"

He cast a fake scowl at them for a moment, then started chuckling at himself. Okay, okay, he'd admit it. They got him. They seemed shocked that he'd take being tossed off his branch so lightly. Oh well, he didn't care what they thought of him, so long as it ended with play and not arrows or blows. And this Rito probably was the best playmate he was going to get. As much as he loved Vakiji, the little Lynel wasn't much good at playing, mostly rough housing. Which often ended with Link getting headbutted. He'd had a few bloody noses and more than his fair share of headaches from that.

He picked up his bunch of bananas that had fallen with him and pulled one off, then walked over to the tree and held it out to the bird. They looked at him with eyes narrowed, and he could guess they were suspicious of him. Wasn't hard to guess why. But eventually they took the fruit from him, and he gave them a smile. Hmm, if they were going to linger around, he should probably let them know his name.

So, he tapped his chest, and said, "Link."

The Rito jumped, their eyes widening, "What?" Had they seriously expected him to be completely incapable of talking? Wow.

He chuckled and rolled his eyes a bit and simply repeated, "Link." He was still pretty adamant about waiting until the perfect moment to startle the bird with the fact he's bilingual. Besides, them not knowing he spoke Hylian might make them a bit more loose lipped (loose beaked?) and willing to talk openly.

"... 'Link'." The Rito cocked their head, then finally understood. "That's your name. You have a name? Well I'll be plucked." The Rito shifted, then crouched down. They gestured to themself, and said, "Revali. The Great Revali, if you can manage it."

He... definitely wouldn't be calling them that. From the sound of it, they called themself that enough on their own. But it was nice to know their name. He said it back once, getting a feel for it. Honestly, kind of a neat name. Kind of soft and flowey, nothing like the hard, strong syllables in Lynel names. Though he guessed that made sense. Lynels valued power and perseverance, and so their names were strong and sharp. Rito probably didn't have the same sort of values. It made him wonder what kind of names Zonai had. 'Link' wasn't a name from his tribe, but one from myths and legends, and 'Aria' was a Hylian name. If only his mother had been able to share more of their history with him... maybe Graza knew some.

He jerked back to the present as Revali cleared their throat at him, having jumped down from the tree at some point, "How could you possibly have hit me at all when you doze off so easily? Hello!?"

" **Sorry, lost in thought.** " He said, automatically defaulting to Zonai words.

"... What was that?" The way they said that, Link wasn't sure whether Revali sounded confused, offended, or a little of both, "Do all your kind talk like they're growling at each other?"

Well then, that stung a bit. Now he's definitely going to try to make Revali learn some of his language if he can get away with it. And, he absolutely wasn't going to be speaking Hylian. Why make it easy? He did a little bow and smirked, saying, " **Oh I beg your pardon, banana beak, for I don't talk like some posh royal. It's a waste of time.** "

Revali narrowed their eyes "... Why do I feel like you're mocking me?"

" **Because I am.** " Link snickered, " **Oh this is going to be fun. Come on, I want some actual food.** "

Link began to head for the jungle, and Revali trailed after him, "Where do you think you're going, wait a minute, don't think you've gotten off easy just because you have basic language skills like anyone with half a brain! Where's my quiver, my arrows!?"

" **Yeah, like I'm really going to give them back after that.** " Link looked over his shoulder at the Rito, feigning a look of cluelessness.

Revali huffed and gestured to his bow, then mimed pulling a bowstring, "Arrows. What you use with a bow! You can't just know nothing, right?"

Once again, he pretended like he was thinking, and then said, " **Oh you know, I hid them away in my home. Because I'd rather not be killed or captured or whatever you're paid to do.** " Then he mimed back, first pointing at Revali, then pretending to shoot a bow, then pointing at himself.

Revali tsked, "Little monster. It doesn't matter anyway, I can make more arrows of my own if I must."

" **Gonna be kind of hard unless you can carve an arrow head out of stone, so good luck with that.** " Link waved at them, almost a dismissal, assuming that the more he blew off Revali, the more they'd want to follow him.

And he was right, since the frustrated Rito continued to follow him, griping the entire way. Link didn't lead them to his home of course, turning almost immediately and heading up a steep path to a sort of outpost he'd set up instead. It was inside a small cave he'd found, one that had once been occupied by an Electric Lizalfo who'd tried to kill him. The tribe of Lizalfo he'd befriended had chased it off after he'd mentioned it, though he wasn't sure of it was for him, or because of some kind of grudge between the two kinds. Either way, he'd ended up with the cave. He'd set up a cooking pot (definitely not stolen from the stable that had the gall to be set up in the jungle, no, absolutely not) and left some supplies, just in case he ever needed to use it. Which now he did. He heard Revali click their tongue, and looked back at the bird.

"This is your home? Now this is sad, really." They had their wing-arms crossed, and was shaking their head at the cave.

Link scoffed, " **Better than the tree you slept in.** "

He picked up a Lizal Spear from the back of the cavern and checked it's condition, worried it might have rusted in his time away. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Revali shift uncomfortably and take a step back, and he chuckled to himself. He had no plans to hurt the Rito unprovoked, of course, but maybe it wouldn't hurt if they didn't know that. Might keep them from randomly trying to attack him. Or maybe he'd grown overly pessimistic of people's intentions through his time in the coliseum, and that kind of precaution was unnecessary.

"Go ahead, you little cretin." He looked over as Revali grumbled, standing as if they were prepared for an attack, "Let's see him try. He's tiny, you can take him. You're a trained warrior, this is nothing!"

Oh really? Link almost wanted to flinch at that, those words all but exactly what he'd thought to himself when he'd gone for his sister. He'd had to learn the hard way that his training didn't prevent him from being overpowered, why should Revali have it any different? They shouldn't. So he leapt at them, easily knocking them to the ground. He placed a foot on their chest to keep them down, spear lazily pointed down, though not exactly at them. He realized with a twinge of guilt that he... kind of enjoyed their look of surprise. Of course, when surprise began to turn into mild fear, the enjoyment vanished completely, and he moved his foot and hooked the spear into the weapon belt across his back.

" **If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead.** " He knew they wouldn't understand the words, but maybe the meaning would come across.

He held out his hand to them, and they stared at him for a long moment. Finally, they uttered "What are you?" as if he had an answer he could give. Eventually, and surprisingly, they did take his offered hand and he helped them up. They didn't step back, just watching him warily. He couldn't exactly blame them.

Link nodded at them, then started heading down towards the river that split up the two forests. Of course, they followed him, asking where he was going, but he didn't really mind. He could use some company while fishing. He carefully perched himself on a rock above the babbling water, ignoring Revali's confused murmur. Perhaps the Rito had never stopped to catch a fish before. Did Rito even eat fish? Probably? He had no idea, but he assumed he'd learn pretty quickly. Revali didn't seem the type to suffer in silence. More like the type to complain to everyone and everything in earshot about how horrible something was.

Link stopped thinking about that as he noticed a nice, fat, Hyrule Bass swimming close by. His mouth watered just imagining the dishes he could make with it. By Hylia he'd missed hunting and cooking! He shifted a bit, watching the fish carefully. As soon as it got within range, he struck, stabbing into the water in a flash. He grinned as he pulled the skewered fish out of the water, then turned and waved it a bit to show it off to Revali.

"Well, even animals hunt." They huffed, crossing their wing-arms behind their back, "... But that was... marginally impressive, I suppose. So what do you plan on doing now, gnaw it right off the bone?"

Link rolled his eyes and climbed back up to the cave again. He thought for a second about what exactly he was going to make, then nodded. He jabbed the handle of the spear into the ground until it stood there, then dug through his supplies to see what exactly he had here. Thankfully, he had a few dishes and some sets of cutlery stashed away here. In the way of food however, there wasn't much, just a couple of jars of red spice, a bottle of strange, purple spice that always made food... interesting, some oil (all of which he'd gotten from travelers he saved), and some blocks of rock salt. Well, that would work, the red spice would add a nice kick and the salt would definitely improve the dish. All he needed to get were some mushrooms, and those grew everywhere out here. He pointed at Revali, then at the ground, hoping they got the hint to stay here.

They clearly did, and didn't take it well, "I am not a dog to order around, and I will do as I please, whether you like it or not."

Link sighed. He pointed at the fish, then began to mimic a Lizalfo, crouching a bit and making the little hops and squeaks the lizard creatures did. And Revali just looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

"What. Are you doing? Why are you dancing around like a-" they blinked, then looked at the fish, ".... Wait, you're telling me to guard the fish, aren't you? You do know that's far beneath me, right?"

" **Just stay here and let out all that hot air, for the love of Hylia.** "

Now at least they knew why he wanted them to stay, so maybe they would. He moved past them, half expecting them to complain or follow, probably both, but thankfully they didn't. He managed to gather up a few different types of mushrooms, and even grabbed a couple of mighty thistles to experiment a little with the recipe, and when he returned, he found Revali sitting on top of the cave.

"You're very slow when you want to be." They sighed as if bored, watching him, "You'd better be glad you can do whatever you did to beat me. In a fair fight, you would be completely overwhelmed by my skill."

Honestly, with how well they could shoot a bow, he kind of thought that it would be an interesting fight, and one he'd be hard pressed to win. Though how could it ever be called fair, seeing as Revali can fly and he can't. But Link just shrugged it off and he headed into the cave to prepare the food. It wasn't difficult or extravagant, just sauteed mushrooms and seasoned fish, but the smell was incredible. Even Revali seemed to think so, since they came down from their perch to look at what he was doing. He plated the finished meal, and held out one to Revali.

"Well... look at that." They took the plate, looking at it critically, "It... actually looks pretty good." They took an offered fork and sat down, their legs crossed, "It smells pretty good too. Though it could just be because I'm very hungry. At this point, probably anything would seem edible."

Link scoffed and took a bite with a happy hum. He knew he was a good cook, Revali could say whatever they wanted and that wouldn't change. Though, judging by the noise they made, it didn't seem like they were going to have any complaint. Link relaxed, leaning against the wall of the cave, smiling to himself. How weird is this? Sharing a meal with a person who was only here to attack him. He wished more conflict could be resolved this way... if this conflict was truly resolved. He glanced over at Revali. After this, if they got their quiver and arrows, would they attempt to fight him? Was this more of a temporary ceasefire than a truce? He'd rather they not force him to hurt them like the Hylian soldier had.

He shook his head. He'd rather not think about that right now. For now, there was peace between the two of them, and he was just having a meal with some company. Later, maybe, he'd worry about possibility. But for now, he'd just enjoy this rare treat.

* * *

Revali had to admit, the food was very good. And... the barbarian, Link, was... actually kind of pleasant. Kind of. He was also insufferable and childish. But he wasn't what the stories made him out to be. He wasn't ruthless and bloodthirsty, despite his wild appearance. He wasn't an animal, he was just another person, trying to live his life. Were the stories just wrong, and it was a misunderstanding? Or had he been lied to? Thinking back on how Rhoam had spoken, Revali was rather tempted to believe the latter.

He shifted a bit, a frown growing on his face. Of course, this could all be a ruse. Link very easily could be luring him into a false sense of security. But he knew there was really no reason to go through so much effort. Link had gotten him in a situation where he'd be very easy to kill three times now, and hadn't. That last time especially stuck out in his mind. He didn't know what the strange and foreign words Link had used meant exactly, but it wasn't hard to guess.

"Everything they told me about you was wrong." He said suddenly, watching as Link paused and looked over at him. "You aren't what they said at all, are you?" The Zonai just stared at him in silence, but something about that look in his eyes gave Revali the sneaking suspicion that Link knew what he was saying. So he continued, "They talk about you like they talk about Bokoblins and the like. A monster."

"Kilva. Bokoblin, Moblin. Kilva."

"Kilva. That's your word for monster, then?"

Link nodded before looking back at his food. He pushed it around a bit on the plate, muttering in a bitter tone, "Ilat set kilva...."

Like before, the meaning of the words was easy to interpret: "I'm not a monster". Revali nodded, "I don't think are either."

Link glanced at him, and a tentative smile began to form, "... Illun io."

"You're welcome."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I also wanted to add a little note down here. I just want to thank everyone for the kudos and the kind words, I appreciate every single comment I've gotten on this, I look forward to it every week! I'll keep responding to every one I get, too. 
> 
> Also, I'm currently actively working on two fics, this one, and another BotW/HW:AoC AU, which is a role swap where Link is the prince and Zelda is a royal guard, and that one is gonna be more a romance because I just... I love the shark and the bird, y'all. Let me romance Sidon, Nintendo, please.


	9. Chapter 9

Zelda was exhausted. She'd been traveling for days now, almost nonstop. She'd kept her eyes on the horizon, and hadn't seen a single sign of Revali returning in this entire time. That made her worry all the more. Had the Zonai killed him? Or kidnapped him? Because if he had been successful, she would have known far before now. But soon she'd know. She had finally reached the Lakeside Stable the day before, the last touch of Hylian civilization before her final trek into the jungles of Faron. She had waited out the night there so that she wouldn't be wandering there in the dark. Upon asking, she'd received vague directions to the old ruins, along with warnings of curses and misfortune should she enter. Not that she believed them... much.

And now here she stood at the threshold of Sarjon Bridge, frowning at her own hesitation. There was a feeling of walking into a forbidden place, one that caused a cold chill down her spine. Perhaps she should have put more stock into the tales of curses. But she was a researcher at heart, and this unknown was as fascinating as it was intimidating. Besides, she had to know what happened to Revali. So, she steeled herself and crossed the threshold. Despite her fears and misgivings, nothing leapt out to attack her. No grasping darkness, no monsters, no furious ghosts. Just the same jungle noises she'd been hearing for the past couple of hours, and ever so slightly heavier air than before.

She looked around for a moment, adjusted her knapsack, and began to follow the trail. All she had been told was to follow the statues, and there were none around here. And sadly her map didn't have a marker or anything for the ruins. In fact, the map was very vague about this entire area, which definitely made this more difficult. It struck her as odd. Her father didn't believe much in curses like the ones said to be here, so why hadn't he had this area charted? It wasn't as if he hadn't sent cartographers to other, far more dangerous areas, like the depths if the Hebra Mountains or the fires of Eldin Volcano. What caused his reservations about this place?

It was just another question she so desperately wanted answered. Though, the one she was most concerned with right now was 'why did she suddenly feel like she was being watched'? She stopped and began to look around, nervous. She didn't really have any weapons with her, something she now cursed herself for not thinking about, so she had no way to defend herself if something decided to attack. So far, nothing was, but she didn't relax. Then she heard the characteristic vocalizations of Lizalfos, the squeaking and chirping, and she decided that going in unarmed was foolish. She'd never ran away faster in her life, hurrying back across the bridge into known territory in a near panic.

Well that was embarrassing... but a bit of trial and error was a part of any scientific research. Completely understandable. She'd find something to defend herself with and return, easy! She had to hurry though, now that she thought about it. Of course it wasn't unusual for her to lock herself in her room for days at a time, but by this time, there was no way that she hadn't been found missing. It would probably take a long time for news of her disappearance to reach this far south, unless Rhoam decided to try and blame the Zonai for it... which he very well could. That odd bias of his was extreme, and she wasn't sure how far it went.

She stopped herself again with a groan. She couldn't be afraid, she had to hurry. To try and make contact with the Zonai, before she ran out of time. So she grabbed up a stick and marched back across the bridge again, holding it with both hands and ready to wack any threat that came her way. She didn't hear the Lizalfos again, but that wasn't much comfort since the feeling of being watched returned fairly quickly. If they were silently watching her, that was far worse. So she swung her "weapon" around, glaring into the brush.

"I'll fight you!" She yelled defiantly, rather proud when her voice didn't waver, "I will!" She only received more silence though. Now she frowned, and lowered the stick a bit. Were this a Lizalfo... wouldn't it have attacked by now? And wouldn't it have chased her across the bridge? "Hello?" Was the Zonai there, watching her? Honestly... that was a bit more unnerving. But if it was him.... She pulled her bag off and dug out a small journal she'd been writing her findings in, and quickly flipped to the few words she'd copied out of one of her oldest tomes. "Uhm... oh! Uh, fail o? Fallow?" She wasn't quite sure how to pronounce it, unfortunately, but she hoped she'd managed to say hello in his tongue.

She heard some movement just a bit to the left of where she was looking, and turned to face it the noise. She couldn't see him, he was too well hidden, but now she was certain he was there. She sidestepped a bit to try and get a look at him, but couldn't. She glanced back at the book and tried to find something else to say, finally settling on, "Me-oh et Zelda. Teh-oh lan i-oh nah-lin?" She probably was brutally butchering this pronunciation. But she was trying her best.

"You're not very good at that." She yelped at the sudden voice, and turned around. And there he was, how he'd gotten around her without her noticing, she didn't know, but he had. And he... was nothing like she was expecting. She'd expected some large, powerful, fully grown man. But he couldn't have been much older than her if he was at all, and he was a tiny bit shorter than her too. And he didn't have the dark hair or eyes that the books had claimed Zonai often had. Of course, the fact that he spoke Hylian so well was the most surprising part... along with the fact that he seemed so very familiar.

"Oh! Uhm... no, I suppose I wouldn't be." She replied, slowly closing her journal, "I... haven't exactly had any lessons. I've just been trying to teach myself. Did I at least say the right words?"

He stood with his arms crossed, and looked like he was considering not answering her, but thankfully he did, "Close. 'Falio' is 'hello', but you said 'my is Zelda'. 'Mio nalin et' is 'my name is'. And you'd ask my name with 'Teo et ion nalin'. So, close. But you didn't come for a language lesson, yeah?"

She blinked and shook her head, "No, no I really didn't. I came for a few things. First of all, I came to ask you about a Rito named Revali, he-"

"He, huh? Okay. He's okay. Can't fly. Something about damaged feathers." He rubbed the back of his head, looking a little embarrassed, "... Miiiiiight have been my fault? In my defense, he was the one attacking me."

Zelda relaxed a bit and sighed, "I'm just glad to know he's alright. Is he still here?"

"Yeah, banana beak has been following me around a lot. He's sleeping right now."

She gave a little chuckle at the nickname. With the Zonai being so nonchalant about all of this, it sounded like they were getting along. Yet another surprise! "It's good he's not missing. I was worried when I didn't see him flying back. I haven't interacted with him... almost at all, but... well... I was worried." She'd rather not mention the rumors about him, they'd probably just upset him.

"I can imagine. But I don't kill for no reason. So you don't have to worry anymore. Is that it?"

"Well... no actually. I have a warning for you. The king, he's... he's insistent on catching you again. And I don't know why. It doesn't make any sense." She began to pace, something she often found herself doing when she was deep in thought, "He mentioned Zonai magic and what it can do, but even if the legend is true, which I highly doubt, you're just one single person! There's no way you could have so much power in yourself alone that you could bring forth another calamity! I-"

"Wait, wait, slow down, wait!" She stopped as he interrupted him, "I'm rusty with Hylian, I can't keep up. You need to slow down. Look, do you want to come and talk somewhere... not out in the open? It's better to have cover."

"What?" Zelda looked around, getting back to reality, then hummed and nodded, "Well, yes, we probably should. I'd rather not be attacked by anything."

"There's not much that would, I just. Am not used to talking? And we're a bit too close to that road for me. Uh... just follow me, alright?"

Perhaps she shouldn't be trusting him so readily, but something about the situation just... made her feel safe around him. She nodded again, and followed his lead deeper into the trees and brush. She payed attention to the surrounding, noticing with some surprise that there were many plants that she didn't recognize. They hadn't been growing on the other side of the bridge. That didn't make much sense, as the environments weren't much different. Could there be previously undiscovered animals as well? And why were these only here? Maybe this Zonai knew something? She quickened her pace to walk a bit more beside him.

"... So. You never did tell me your name."

He responded with a bit of a smirk, "Ask me again."

She blinked, a bit confused, then got the idea. She thought back to how he pronounced the words and attempted it, "Teo et ion nalin?"

"Not bad, you learn quick. I'm Link."

"Really? I don't mean to cause any offense but I... did not expect to hear that."

Link chuckled a bit, "Well what did you expect?"

"I'm not really sure. Something foreign sounding, maybe? I guess I just didn't realize that the Zonai would know the word."

"I was named after a legendary hero." He explained, "Someone who saved Hyrule from evil. Though honestly, I'm not sure if it is able to be saved anymore."

"What makes you say that?"

He paused, then looked at her. His expression was one of forced neutrality, but his eyes betrayed how he really felt, and the anger so clearly burning in him made her nervous. "Obviously you've never seen the coliseum. That's where they kept me. Can't save kingdom from evil when kingdom is the evil, can you?" With his anger came breaks in his words, like he had trouble speaking Hylian when he got upset. His accent, which she had barely noticed before, got thicker as well. It was like a slight growl and hiss to his words, as if an animal had learned how to speak. Which felt like a bit of an offensive way to describe it, but she couldn't really think of any other way.

"... There are good Hylians, you know. We're not all like what you experienced."

"You don't know what I went through." It was mostly a statement, but there was also a bit of a questioning tone, as if he didn't quite believe her. "... That's... it's not important right now. Come on, we're almost there."

"I... okay." She frowned, worried. She knew he'd been captured, but she didn't know he'd been held in the coliseum. She didn't know what went on there, but she couldn't imagine anything good. Especially with how he was acting. "I'm sorry that I struck a nerve, I didn't mean to."

"... Not your fault."

They continued on in silence. Eventually, they reached what appeared to be a large mound that jutted out of the ground, but turned out to be hollow and a bit of a cave. It looked lived in, but she couldn't imagine that this was Link's home. On further inspection, she noticed a hammock spread between two trees a bit high off the ground. After standing on her toes, she caught sight of deep blue feathers, and smiled. Link had been telling the truth, Revali really was still here, and seemed to be just fine considering he had himself a nest up there.

She noticed Link settle himself next to the cooking pot, though he wasn't actually sitting down, just kind of crouched down as if he'd need to jump up and leap into action at any moment. It looked natural, and she could imagine he did it often. Did he ever just relax? She wouldn't have been surprised if the answer was no. She walked over and sat down on the opposite side of the pot as he began to work on a fire, which she thought was completely unnecessary. It was hot enough in this sweltering jungle! Especially considering the thick, long sleeve clothes she was in to protect her on her journey. To her surprise though, the fire actually helped cut down the humidity in the little overhang, and the heat was far less uncomfortable when the air was drier.

"Wow, I didn't expect that." She said with a bit of a smile, "Did you figure that out yourself?"

"... Kind of. I was told about it. But it sounds like there's more important things to talk about. King wants me, and you said something about a calamity?"

"Right, yes!" She pulled her bag off her shoulders and dug out her books, many from ancient times and that one she had yet to decode, and flipped open one that had an artist's representation of the terrible dragon that had attacked, "What I do know to be historically accurate is that ages ago, a massive black dragon covered in wicked flames attacked Hyrule, and was somehow banished and sealed out of the land by a sacred power. According to legend, this power resides in the royal family's bloodline, which is... plausible, all things considered. And the dragon had been summoned by a malicious curse, one legends blame the Zonai for, which seems far less factual."

Link frowned at the book with a small scowl, "My ancestors wouldn't have done that. We live with the land, they wouldn't have summoned something to destroy it. Why would anyone?"

"Just as I thought. For some reason, most ancient texts don't go farther back than a certain point, as if someone wanted to hide history. But, I've been able to uncover some texts from earlier, ones I found hidden away in secret passages beneath the castle." She was starting to get excited again, and she took a breath to attempt to keep herself in check. "I'm certain there's more down there to be found, but I haven't had the time to search for other pathways down." She grabbed the unknown book, holding it carefully. "This book here is the oldest I've found, just judging by the state of it, the weathering on the cover and pages, and the fact it's written in some... ancient runes. I've never seen anything like them before. I'm working on deciphering them, but... it's slow going."

She held up the book to show Link the cover, and he cocked his head at it. He narrowed his eyes for a moment, before blinking in surprise. He held his hands out, a silent request to be handed the book. She hesitated though. This was a priceless tome, potentially the only of its kind, and she was more than a little nervous to just hand it over to someone she barely knew. Eventually, slowly, she passed it to him, though she wasn't happy to have it in someone else's hands.

He ran his finger over the runes on the front, lips moving silently as he did so. He looked so focused that Zelda barely breathed in anticipation of whatever he was going to say next. Finally, he said, "Javel kel magnata. It means 'Tales of before'. It's Zonai writing."

Zelda's eyes widened, and a massive grin grew on her face. She felt like she was going to burst! This was perfect, this could literally be no better! And in her excitement, she couldn't help but shout, "You can read it!!"

Link jumped back a bit at her outburst, then sighed, "Y-Yeah, I can. It would take me a while though, I'm not good at reading it. I was taught Hylian writing first. And... I didn't get to have many lessons."

Zelda frowned at that. Why would he have been taught Hylian first? And, now that she thought about it, why did he speak it so fluently? She shook her head, those questions were not as important as other information, "What matters is that you can read it at all. With more practice, you'll probably get faster and faster as well! This right here could prove that the ancient calamity wasn't caused by your tribe. Clearing their names might just make it easier to convince everyone to leave you alone!"

Link was silent for a long time, staring at the cover of the book, then asked, "Why do you care so much?"

That gave her pause. From what little she'd gathered from him, she could understand how he'd have a hard time trusting her. She scooted around the cooking pot a bit to be just a tiny bit closer to him. When he glanced up, she met his eyes and said, "Because it's the right thing to do. If I'm right, and the Zonai were innocent, then people need to know about it. I'd be just as bad as the ones who made up the story if I just let it go! I just want the truth to be out there."

He watched her for a moment, then nodded. "I'll look for mentions of dragons in the book. I know what that looks like really well, so that should be easy."

"Can you show me? So that I can look if ever I don't have you to translate." Currently she didn't have any plans on leaving until she had all the information she could squeeze out of the book, but it's always best to be better prepared.

He nodded, then carefully pulled a stick from the fire. He blew it out and used the charred end to begin drawing on the wall. The symbols were a spiral with a tic on the outer end, and three lines that made a disconnected arrow, almost like the bones in a Keese's wing. She hummed and cocked her head, "I've seen that first symbol so much. I thought it was just the mark of your tribe. Like a signature."

"It is." He said, putting the stick down, "The word for dragon is zonata. When my ancestors arrived in Hyrule, it's said those that didn't stay behind on the beach followed the cries of a dragon to this new home. They started called themselves Zonata Iccori. The Dragon's Blood. Somehow, it was shortened to Zonai, and it stuck."

"Arrived here? So they came from somewhere else? Where?" She shook her head, "Wait, never mind. Important business first, the book. Let's see what we can find." She scooted more until she was sitting next to Link, "Don't expect me to not be looking too."

"Uh...." He seemed mildly uncomfortable, and she had to wonder if he ever had any contact with anyone. "Alright. You just point out any dragon symbols you see, I guess? And I'll do the same."

"Sounds like a plan."

"So." They both jumped at the voice, and looked up to see Revali standing at that mouth of the cavern. How long he had been standing there, Zelda couldn't tell, though she could guess it was probably her scream that had woken him up, "Was I going to be invited to this little party, or is it a private affair? ALSO." He glared towards Link with narrowed eyes, "I knew it, I KNEW you could speak, you filthy little creature! How long did you plan to play dumb with me?"

Link started to laugh, "As long as I could, banana beak."

The Rito balked, "Banana-?! Why you little-!"

"Revali please, now is not the time, there's work to do!"

He glanced at Zelda and scoffed, then flicked one of his wings as if in dismissal and settled himself down on the other side of Link, his expression twisted in a slight scowl and his feathers puffed up slightly, giving him the appearance of a pouting child. Link snickered and muttered "Pomfa avia" which just made the Rito scowl more. Zelda just sighed, exasperated slightly at the two, and opened the book. Link shook his head and, thankfully, also returned his focus to the task at hand.

The process was surprisingly smooth. With both of them on the look for the dragon symbol, it was all but impossible to miss one. It was sprinkled about rather often, which slowed them a bit, but Link was quickly getting good at telling whether or not curses, the dragon's color, or the word 'calamity' was mentioned. Which it often wasn't. Finally, nearer to the end, they hit a breakthrough.

"Wait, curse, here's one." Link had said. He mumbled a few sentences under his breath, reading aloud apparently rather helpful for him, then grinned, "I think we have it."

Zelda was practically buzzing! After so long of investigating and trying fruitlessly to find out anything on the ancient stories, finally, a breakthrough! "Well go on, then, read it!"

"Right." He looked a bit nervous, but nodded, "Okay, 'The soothsayer brought back a prophecy from our guardian, a warning. A dragon black as the moon shadowed sun... Malice burning across it's body'... Malice?" He stopped and scratched the back of his head, "I think that's the word... but it's not normal. Usually, 'malice' is written as three lines, one with a jagged edge. And this is close, but it's got these bubbles on it... I've never seen this mark before."

"Odd...." Zelda hummed, "Maybe it's something similar? Perhaps the name of the curse?"

Link frowned in thought, "So something like... 'adeji' I think?... That sounds so familiar...."

"What do you mean it 'sounds familiar'?" Revali chimed in, startling them both. Honestly, Zelda had almost forgotten he was there, so consumed in her work, "You do know your own language, don't you?"

Link bristled a bit, "I'm doing the best I can. 'Malice' isn't exactly a word that pops up in conversation, you know!"

Zelda decided to cut this off before it went further. She still needed Link's help, and he probably wouldn't be keen on giving it if he was angry, "That's understandable. I learn new Hylian words all the time, and I hear it every day. I... can't imagine you hear Zonai words much."

"... No I really don't. Let's... just focus on the book, okay?" He shook his head and, without waiting for an answer, returned to translating, "'The words struck fear in us. The stories of this creature from long ago were still fresh. We could not allow what happened to our former home to come to pass again.' So this dragon wasn't a new thing. It had happened before."

"And it was enough to drive your ancestors away completely. I can't imagine the kind of destruction it would take for an entire civilization to have to abandon their home like that!"

Revali clicked his beak, "Well, seeing as we're all here, I think it's safe to say that dragon was dealt with."

"I would assume so, thank goodness."

"Hopefully. 'We brought the prophecy to the kingdom, and the king wisely listened to it. We prepared for the onslaught, knowing it was drawing nearer as monster attacks came more and more. When it finally arrived, it made monsters more powerful than any we had experienced before. The fight was bitter, but two among us ended it. A warrior by the name of'... I don't know what this rune means, and it looks like a jumble of a bunch of different ones, so it's a completely made up name. It has no meaning except to the people who knew them. Which is usually the kind of name given to someone who's done something awful. So history will know their deeds but not their name. Sometimes it's given when people just want to be remembered that way. So they're not some kind of idol."

"It sounds overly complicated to me." Revali huffed.

"Maybe if you shook some feathers out of your brain, you'd understand it."

"ExcUSE ME?"

"Can we not?" Zelda pleaded. "I want to know the end!"

Link grumbled a bit and looked back at the book, "I'll just... keep going then. The warrior... 'And a woman from the kingdom. They both held powerful, ancient magic, our warrior's power from the spirits of the ancient, and the woman's from this land's goddess. One to purge the evil, the other to seal it away. However' that symbol again, 'was struck down amidst the casting, and the woman had to finish the spell alone. The dragon was banished, and the borders of this land sealed away to prevent it's return. However, we were warned that the magic would not hold forever. The dragon would return on the land's day, drawn towards hate and despair and bloodshed. We must prepare for our descendants.' Well.... That's not good."

For once, Revali was quieter, "No, I'd say not... there does seem to be a lot of hate going around right now. And monsters have been unusually active and aggressive."

"..." Zelda frowned and stood, "People need to know about this! We need to warn everyone! They might just have bigger problems than their witch hunt."

"... I don't think we can."

She stared at Link as if he'd suddenly sprouted another head, "What?"

"One book. One book only I can read. No one is going to believe this."

"As much as I hate to admit it, I think he's right. For once."

"... Ugh!" She flopped back down and put her face in her hands, "This is so frustrating! Why are these records gone, this is important! This is possible apocalypse levels of importance! What happened?!"

"We need to find out. Maybe with those answers, we can find a way to make people listen." Link looked at the book, then at Zelda, "You said you found this in the castle?"

"Yes, buried deep under it in a secret passageway."

"Try to find more, if you can. Anything. Revali, I'll give you your quiver and arrows back, you go with her back to the castle. Say I... wasn't here, or something, I don't know."

"And who gave you the right to give out orders?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

"... Proceed."

"... While you two are doing that, I'll be looking at this. I'll try to find anything I can, and if there's a place that it mentions... I'll go there."

Zelda frowned and looked at her hands. She had a horrible feeling about all this. Like something was going to go horribly wrong very quickly. But Link's plan was the only one they had, and there was little else she could do about it. And so, she nodded, a dread settled quietly in her. All she could do was play her part... and pray that everything turned out for the better.


	10. Chapter 10

"The Lomei? It has been a long time since I've heard of them. Why do you ask?" Graza was relaxing in her cave, Vakiji sleeping tucked against her side. Link had come to her, hopeful for answers to his many questions brought up by the book. And it seemed he may be getting at least one.

"I only just now learned about them. From a book of all things!"

"Oh? Where did you get the book?"

"It... it's kind of a weird story. I was hunted down by a Rito, they're bird people from up north ish of here, if I remember right. Well, I hit him with arrows and he fell out of the sky, and apparently got hurt and couldn't fly anymore, and he was too stubborn to leave so he just.... Stuck around. Complained about the heat a lot too. Anyway, a woman also came and she was looking for us, mostly to make sure he was still alive. Apparently she's a scholar? She could speak a little of our words. Not... not well really, but passable after I corrected her. But she had this book written in runes, and I can read it, so she let me keep it."

Graza had her head tilted down a bit, staring at Link incredulously, "... My, my, you sure have had a strange experience haven't you?"

"I told you it was a weird story." He chuckled. "At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if a tree comes to life and starts talking to me. Things are all upside down."

Now it was Graza's turn to chuckle, "Link, if you start talking to a tree, I'll be concerned. Oh but you came here with a question, didn't you? Now let's see...." She tapped a finger against her chin and hummed, "The Lomei. They were a part of your people, but they decided to leave the trees and spread out across this land. They were wanderers. I heard tale that they created many structures, including those thin stone towers with the little platform at the top. Those are markers, apparently. To lead each other and your people towards their destinations. I'd assume many have been destroyed by now though."

And not without bitterness, Link agreed, "Probably. The Hylians hate everything to do with my kind. Including me."

"You fall into the same category as me then." She said. Then she flinched and rubbed her head, at the same time Vakiji whimpered in his sleep.

Link was immediately worried, "A-Are you okay?"

"Mm.... Yes. We've been getting these odd headaches occasionally, but they're not too bad, and they're fleeting. I'm worried though... it feels as if they're getting more frequent. And... may I ask if the air feels heavier to you?"

Link paused for a moment. He moved his arm as if to see if he would find resistance, then nodded, "... A bit, actually. This is bad. Graza, I have to tell you something. The book, it mentioned this black dragon that causes destruction wherever it goes. It said that it was pushed out once, but that it would probably come back."

"And now you think it might be on its way."

"... Yes. That's why I asked about the Lomei. The book mentions them as the wandering blood, their name shortened by the Hylians just like Zonai was. So I guessed the name."

"A good guess, little one." Graza huffed, frowning heavily, "... I can not travel to it myself, not with Vakiji, but I do know where some of the Lomei structures are. One is close. It's a labyrinth, west of here. Where stone turns to sand. There's three of these mazes, one in the frozen north, the desert one I told you of, and one in the farthest corner away, opposite of here. These three were challenges your people would have to overcome if they were chosen to become the leader. Something important sleeps in these places, but everyone I had ever talked to was very vague on the details. I have a feeling that you'd already planned to find these places, but I have to ask you... please be careful. More often than once, I've heard of fool hearty people attempting the challenge and never returning."

Link nodded, though he was more than a little worried. "Were there... any rules about entering the maze? Things you can't do or else?"

"Not that I know of, though it was traditional for the perspective leader to go without any preparations, and be forced to survive only on what they could find. To prove their strength, cunning and resourcefulness. It's said that no perspective leader had ever failed these trials. Link, I suggest you forgo tradition on this. You aren't a leader to be. So please, make sure you are well prepared before attempting this."

He nodded again, "Then I guess I had better go get prepared then. If that dragon really is coming, I'm going to need to be quick. Maybe something in those mazes will help me."

"I sincerely hope so. Fair travels Link. And... please, return to us."

"I give you my word."

They gave each other a nod, and Link began to head south, opting to follow the easiest route back for once. However, as he reached the wetlands where normally he'd begin to turn, he froze. There is was... the singing, the drums. As faint as the first time he'd thought he'd heard it. But this time he couldn't blame hunger, thirst, or exhaustion like he could so long ago. This time, he was completely clear headed and aware, and yet still he heard the ghostly music, and it pulled him like a siren's song. He looked to his right, where the music seemed to be coming from. It was west, towards the Lomei labyrinth Graza had told him of. He tried to tell himself to ignore the sound, to turn and prepare like he had planned on doing, but he just couldn't bring himself to. He sprinted for the canyon wall and began to climb, lead on by the spirit music.

The trip was surprisingly quick, and all he'd needed to do was scale a few plateaus in his way. Cresting the last, the strange structure came into view. A massive, walled in structure so deep it didn't seem light would touch the bottom... which might have actually been a relief, since the heat had only risen more and more as he'd journeyed. Just on the other side was the desert, which seemed to stretch on forever like a yellow sea. A large creature was wandering it, with long legs with hooved feet, an equally neck, and a lumpy back, a set of wings folded at its sides. Another dragon, with rocky plates and blue markings similar to the other one Link had met. It made him a bit nervous with how close it was to the maze, but he hoped it would just ignore him.

He managed to reach the base of the structure without much issue and found the opening to it. It was dark inside, just like he'd suspected, and ominous. It felt like anything could leap out at him at any moment with no warning. And yet, he only felt a twinge of apprehension. The song was still leading him, and it was as if he felt safe following it. Perhaps when the music was no longer calling him, he'd find it ominous, but for now he just took a steadying breath and entered the ruins. Almost immediately, he suppressed a shiver. The temperature plummeted in the dark, and the air felt thicker and musty, like a place that had been closed up for many, many years. Sunlight from above only gave the slightest of illumination, as if he were deep deep in a cave, and he could imagine that if he had entered at night, the darkness would be complete and impenetrable. It was odd, considering there was no roof or door to seal the maze, and yet the fact remained that he felt completely cut off from the outside that was merely two steps away.

Something in the back of his mind contemplated turning tail and running immediately, like this place was forbidden and he shouldn't dare step foot here. But the ghostly song continued to spur him forward, and he continued deeper into the labyrinth. He reached a fork almost immediately, and simply followed the voices to the right. They hadn't lead him wrong before, so he figured that they probably wouldn't lead him astray now. The path twisted and turned, and eventually lead him lower into the ground where the darkness honestly did become complete, but he didn't wander from the path the voices lead him down. Time held no meaning down here, and he wasn't sure how long he'd been within the walls, but he doubted it was too very long seeing as he wasn't getting tired or hungry yet. Something he was noticing however, was that the voices seemed to be getting louder the longer he traveled, though the words became no clearer.

Finally, he reached an area with stairs leading down deeper into the unknown. He pressed his hand against the wall as he reached the bottom, planning to feel his way forward, only to jerk his hand away at the sharp shock he felt. The walls began to illuminate, starting from the point he'd touched and quickly spreading out in a greenish blue glow. They were runes, the same ones repeated over and over without a real pattern. Worthy, wanderer, dragon, Zonai. The voices had gone silent now, leaving him to figure this out on his own. He stepped tentatively into the room, looking around for a sign or clue, but all he noticed was the runes... and a circular hole in the back wall. He tried to look into it, but he couldn't see anything through the unnatural blackness. He could only really think of one option, and that was to stick his arm in the hole, and he honestly didn't want to do that. He didn't think his people would leave a trap at the very end of the maze, but this felt so much like a trap. Eventually, he just growled to himself and all but punched into the darkness of the hole, eyes shut tight as he prepared for the worst.

For a long moment, nothing happened, and he peeked one eye open to see if something had visibly changed. Which, it hadn't. He was confused, why would the voices lead him all the way here if nothing- his thoughts where cut short when he felt pressure around his wrist, as if someone had just grabbed his arm. He jerked, but despite how gentle the grip was, it had him firmly in place. He was near to panicking when something else that felt eerily like a hand with long finger nails grabbed at his fist and forced his hand open. It removed the bindings on his hand, and he felt one of those long nails poke his palm. It traced the lines there like a seer would to tell a fortune, and it paused for a moment. Then he heard a voice.

"A young one you are." It said slowly, and he couldn't tell where exactly it was coming from, or whether it was one voice or many. He wasn't even sure what language it was speaking, only that he understood it, "Your tribe is in ruins, scattered to the wind and possibly lost forever, and yet still you hold their traditions. Your half blood heritage doesn't slow you, nor does the treatment you've endured. You claim to hate the others, and yet still you wish to help them, to help anyone. Everyone. Why?"

He didn't speak right away, shock and apprehension making his tongue feel heavy. Besides, he wasn't exactly sure how to answer that. The voice was patient though, and gave him time to react. Finally, he managed to say something, "... I feel like I need to. I don't have to be like them. I don't have to turn my back on them. And right now, what I'm doing is bigger than them. It's everyone. It's Graza and Vakiji, it's Aria, it's even Revali and Zelda too. Everyone is in danger."

"A sense of duty. Admirable. You know of the power you hold, do you not?"

"I've been told about it."

"And you do not know how to tap into it."

It wasn't a question, and it felt less like a statement and more like an accusation. Link bristled a bit, "I haven't exactly had anyone to teach me how."

"Your irritation is understandable, but unnecessary. It is no fault of your own that you cannot make use of it. Power such as this requires a catalyst to manifest, and active intent to be harnessed. You have experienced the catalyst. You will find the intent. And perhaps this will help you." He felt the nail tracing across his palm again, this time writing out a rune. The lines were hot as they were draw, almost painfully so, and left his skin tingling uncomfortably. "You have completed this labyrinth, young one. It seems you have two more. I wish you a fair journey and safe travels."

Finally, his hand was released, and he slowly withdrew his arm. He glanced at his hand and could faintly see what had been drawn there. It was the rune for "hero". He flexed his hand a few times, then wrapped the bindings back around it. He... didn't feel changed, but something in the back of his mind told him something was different. He waited for a second to see if any more would happen, and when it didn't, he turned and left the chamber. Outside of it, he noticed everything seemed... brighter. He would have assumed he was just accustomed to the dark by now, but no, he'd been in a lit chamber, that didn't make sense. He glanced at his palm, wondering if the rune had something to do with this. Of course, standing there wouldn't answer it, and he had two other mazes to get to, so he made his way out of the structure.

The sun was setting by now, which was a welcome relief from the heat he'd been dreading. He paused before he stepped out though. Something felt off... he didn't trust this. So instead of walking, he ran, doing a roll that allowed him to be back on his feet and facing the entrance. He'd been right to be cautious, as on either side of the opening were two tall, dark skinned women wielding spears. Gerudo warriors. He snarled, baring his teeth in a way that felt natural, and they seemed shocked that he hadn't fallen into their trap. They pointed their spears at him, but a quick command of "Wait" from behind him made them immediately stand at attention, and made him whip around to face this new arrival.

Another Gerudo, this one dressed more elaborately, with a short sword sheathed behind her back and a shield on her hip. She held herself with an air of authority, and he could guess that she was either a captain of their guard, or quite possibly their leader. She stopped a few paces away from him, standing with one hand on her hip.

"Well, well, well." She said, looking him up and down critically, "So you're the Zonai boy that has Rhoam up in arms."

He stood tall, meeting her gaze silently. If this was going to devolve into conflict, he wanted to make sure they knew he was ready for a fight, weapons or no.

"I was surprised Revali came back, honestly. Even more so when he said you weren't in the Damel Woods. Then I get a report that one of my vai spotted a suspicious figure near the maze? Of course I had to come and check it out." She shifted position and crossed her arms, "... Do you know why I didn't come after you like Revali did?"

... He hadn't even known that others had also been tasked with finding him.

"I told Rhoam it was because fighting you on your turf and your terms would be a death sentence. But it's more than that. I've been around for a while, and I was lucky enough to meet some of your people when I was very young. The Zonai and the Gerudo have quite a bit in common you know. Pride, ferocity, prejudice against us." She cocked her head just slightly, "I'm Urbosa, chief of the Gerudo. And as long as you stay out of sight of the Hylians and don't cause any trouble, you're welcome here."

Link jumped a bit, his fierce expression and rigid demeanour gone in a moment. He's welcome here? He... had never expected to be welcomed anywhere, honestly. His jump made Urbosa laugh.

"I guess you expected a fight, hmm? Besides everything else, you're also completely unarmed. I'm not comfortable fighting someone at a disadvantage. If I'm going to battle, I'd rather be on a level playing field with my opponent. Call it honor."

Link nodded a bit. He could understand that... though personally, he wasn't above sneak attack and killing monsters in their sleep. Survival alone in the wild was tough. He sighed, "... Thank you. I don't plan on staying long. I have somewhere to go."

"Ah, so you can speak Hylian, and well too. I thought so. You know... if you washed away the paint, changed your clothes and tied your hair up, you could easily wander around anywhere with no one knowing you're anything more than a Hylian. Maybe keep that in mind if you plan on going far."

He almost grimaced at the thought of leaving his gear, but... she made a very good point. His half blood heritage gave him an advantage. He really didn't look like a Zonai if he wasn't dressed like one. "I will. Again, thank you... I'll remember this. I owe you one."

"Nonsense." She smiled at him, "I'm just finally repaying a very old favor. Good bye, little warrior. May we meet again."

Link wanted to ask her about the favor she was repaying, but her and her warriors were already heading away back for their home, and he did have places to go as well. He watched her leave for a moment, then hurried for the cliff wall. The frozen north... that's where the next labyrinth was. That would be a journey, and he desperately needed some warmer clothing if he was going to attempt it. But he knew he could figure it out. He'd overcome more difficult problems before.


	11. Chapter 11

Link had thought long and hard about what Urbosa had told him, and had decided that he would be at a horrid disadvantage if he continued to roam without the guise of being a regular Hylian. To do that, he needed to get some different clothes. And preferably a big pack to hold his real clothes in. But he couldn't exactly do any of that without some sort of trickery... or thievery. Neither of those sat well with him to do to some random strangers who had done him no wrong. But he felt like he had a plan that would work well for him now.

First, he had looked for water, and eventually found it. It was the very water he'd killed the knight on the bridge above. It made him uncomfortable to be back here, but he had a good reason now. He had removed all his clothes saved for his underwear and hidden them where they'd be safe, then he had jumped down into the water. The paint was pretty waterproof, and so was hard to get off, but with enough scrubbing, he finally was able to remove it... as unhappy as he was to see it finally be wash away. It was like a piece of his identity drifting away on the surface of the water. But it would be alright, he'd just have the markings painted on again later. Now... he needed to find a way to make a few rupees.

The idea came to him pretty quickly as he looked at the lake bottom, where tiny, faint sparkles twinkled up at him. Of course, Gerudo Town was a trading hub! Traders and merchants of all kinds crossed this bridge to get there and sell their wares, and things must fall off and sink down into the water all the time. He dived down and began snatching up everything he could carry, from gemstones to pottery to loose rupees. A few more dives, and he was pretty sure he could afford anything he'd need. He was just glad he hadn't seen the sword or the helmet from the knight down there.

It took him a while to carry it all out of the canyon, especially as water soaked as he was, but that paled in comparison to his actual task. Which was finding a place to actually sell this and buy clothes. He doubted he'd be recognized by his face by anyone but soldiers, but that didn't stop him from being worried. One slip up was all he'd need to be thrown into immense amounts of trouble, and he didn't want to think about the kinds of consequences that he'd have to endure if he was caught. He shuddered a bit, but quickly pushed those thoughts aside. Maybe just focusing on what he had to do would be easier. He noticed movement coming towards him from the direction of the desert, and he took a deep breath to steel himself. This was it, time to get to work. He partially hid himself behind a stone, and waited.

The Hylian noticed him fairly quickly (he wasn't exactly trying to escape notice) and they fixed him with a confused expression, "Uhm... are you alright?"

"Not really." He replied, worried that his accent might give him away. Thankfully, it seemed like it was being very slight today. As long as he kept from getting upset, he should have no trouble, "I decided to go swimming to get the desert off of me, and when I came back, everything was gone! Including my clothes. They must have been in a hurry, cause they dropped a lot of it. Is there any way I could trade for a set of clothes? I'd... really rather not walk around all but naked."

They chuckled, "Wow, you sure ran into some bad luck, huh? Yeah, I think I have some clothes that wouldn't be _too_ big on you, maybe. You'll probably look like a kid wearing their parent's clothes, but at least you won't be running around in your birthday suit."

They shrugged off their pack and dug around, before pulling out a plain cotton shirt and trousers. They walked over and held it out to him, and he gratefully accepted. It felt weird to be so fully covered again, but now he definitely blended in... though he would definitely want to get something more his size soon.

"Thank you. Here," he lined up some of the things he'd salvaged on the rock, then gestured to them, "You can have something. I'm not attached to any of it, so just get what you like."

"Ooh. You've got some interesting stuff here." The trader inspected some of it critically, then nodded, "Alright, how about I throw in a blanket and I'll take this little statue here?"

"Deal."

He waved goodbye to the trader afterwards, and quickly tied the blanket into a makeshift pack with all his things, both those originally his and those salvaged, inside. This would work for now. He headed across the bridge, keeping his head down to lower any chance of someone recognizing his face. It was nerve wracking as he set foot onto cobbled paths, well traveled by foot and horse. He sighed, and headed for the north, knowing the massive mountain with the strange hole in its side to be near his destination. It seemed like such a long journey, more so than anything he'd ever done before. But he could do it. He felt like he had to.

He stopped at the first stable he found, which wasn't too very far down the way, and managed to get some clothes a bit more fit for travel. They also fit much better and came with a cowl to hide his face, which was a plus. These clothes where ones he'd seen many a time back in Hateno due to the shop selling them. It... was a bit uncomfortable to be wearing something that reminded him so much of that place. But they made him blend in well, so he could tolerate them. Now he decided to try and get some directions. He knew generally to go north, but Hyrule couldn't exactly be described as small, and 'north' was pretty broad. He asked around a little, and generally got confused looks, so he could guess it wasn't a place people would too easily stumble across.

Finally, he managed to find some luck. A woman sitting alone at a table who was very clearly a traveler, dressed in heavy armor that didn't look Hylian made. It reminded him a bit of what the soldiers had worn when they'd brought the dragon. He could have mistaken her for a Gerudo considering her size, darker skin and muscle mass, but she had pitch black hair, not red. He didn't question it much considering he wasn't exactly well traveled, and she could be completely average for someone from her region of origin. Something about her did seem so... familiar, though. Despite how intimidating she came off as, he felt oddly comfortable sitting down across from her. She paused mid sip of her drink and looked at him, expression cold and calculating. Now he realized why she felt so familiar. She was giving him the same look Graza had when they first met.

"Hello." He started with a brief wave, "Do you know the Lomei mazes?"

She snorted into her drink and coughed a bit, then stared at him in surprise, "... _You_ know of it?" Her voice came out much like a growl.

He let out a sigh of relief, "Finally, someone who knows of it. Yes. I'm trying to reach the one up north?"

"... Which one? The one in the snowfield, or the one out to sea?"

"Uh... both, actually. The closest one first."

"That'd be the one in the snowfield." She leaned on the table, using one arm to brace herself, and he heard the distinctive clatter if heavy weapons, probably hidden across her back, "... Why do you want to know?"

A challenge. He always rose to a challenge, and this wasn't an exception. He sat up straighter and narrowed his eyes, fixing her with a hard stare that she subtly jerked back from. "Because I need to go there." He said firmly, "I feel it. It's something I have to do."

"...." She sat a bit straighter too, and finally her grim expression cracked into a half cocked grin, "You've got heart kid. I like that. The snowfield is the closest one, it's almost perfectly due north from here. You'll see a massive forest covered in fog to the east, and the Hebra Mountains to the west. It's right on the chasm edge, so don't slip off, or you're gone. First though, you might wanna head for Rito Village."

"Let me guess. Warm clothes?"

"Smart. Yeah, warm clothes, or you're gonna lose fingers and toes at best. And you can get a glider there too. There's no way you can reach the last maze without one, it's on an island off the northeastern most point of all Hyrule." She sipped her drink and mused, "Pretty much all the races have some technique or another for making gliders, but Rito made ones are the best. Gotta trust the birds to know how to keep you in the air, yeah?"

"That makes sense. Rito Village... I can just follow the road and reach that, huh?"

"Pretty much, kinda far so you'll want to head out soon. Gets chilly around there too, but nothing like the snowfield as long as you don't wander too far north. You should be fine. Say. What's your name, kid?"

For some reason or another, he was a little startled by the sudden question, but still answered, "I'm Link."

"Link, huh? That's a good name. Do it proud, alright."

"I will."

"Not a shred of doubt in you, kid, is there? You're a good one. You can call me Ashe. I wander around a lot, maybe I'll see you again, eh?"

Link smiled, "I hope so. Always good to see a friendly face."

At that, Ashe barked out a laugh, "I'm not sure my face is too friendly there, kid, but I appreciate it." She looked out of the doorway and huffed a bit, "I'm gonna be late if I don't head out soon myself. It was good to meet you though."

"It was good meet you too, thanks for the directions."

"It was nothing, just helping a fellow wanderer."

They both stood, and shook hands when Ashe offered her's out. They parted ways outside the stable, Link beginning to follow the road north, and Ashe heading southward. He froze not long after he started though, as words, spoken in a language he never thought he would hear on this journey, were yelled to him.

"Good luck, little warrior. You're going to need it."

He whipped around quickly to confront Ashe, to ask her how she knew Zonai words, where she'd heard them, but she was gone. No where to be seen. He looked around for a sign, any trace, and there was nothing. Was she... a hallucination? A spirit? What had just happened? He didn't know, and doubted he'd be getting any answers any time soon.

* * *

Link shivered as he finally reached Rito Village. The cold was bitter to him thanks to how adapted to heat he was, and he could only imagine how frigid the snow field would be. Still, he could hardly even attempt to imagine right now. His encounter with Ashe was still fresh in his mind, and he doubted he'd be able to think about too much else. How could he? He'd come to the assumption that she had to be Lomei. That would explain her appearance, so much like the people of Lurelin Village, who were descendants of the Zonai themselves, and would explain how she could speak the language as well as Hylian. Maybe her disappearance was some kind of magic? He had no idea.

His thoughts were interrupted by a harsh wind against his back threatening to blow him over. He managed to catch himself, and looked over his shoulder. He couldn't help but smile a bit as a familiar Rito landed behind him. "Hey banana beak. Miss me?"

Revali narrowed his eyes, "Funny. So very funny. What do you want, gremlin child, to bless us all with your _astounding_ comedy?"

"Actually, I came to shop."

"...." Well look at that! He had managed to render Revali speechless for a moment! "Shopping."

"Shopping."

"... I'm going to regret asking this, I'm sure, but what could you possibly have wanted to warrant you dragging your Bokoblin scented carcass all the way here?"

Link paused and sniffed himself first, then after confirming he smelled nothing like a Bokoblin (... he may think about buying some soaps though), replied, "New clothes and a glider. I need them where I'm heading. The mazes."

"The mazes? I know one of them. Sometimes young and reckless Rito will challenge each other to go inside. Most don't head in too far, and the ones who do... we've lost a few fledglings to that place. What do _you_ want with it?"

"It's important, okay? Look, I can explain later, but right now I'm really cold, so can I please just go and grab something?"

Revali huffed, and Link expected some scathing comment, but he was simply dismissed with a wave of a wing. Though... now he was following Link as he walked into the village proper. He wasn't sure why Revali had tagged along for a shopping trip, though he expected it could be distrust shining through. He supposed that if he was charged with protecting a village like a warrior should, he'd be distrustful of pretty much every outsider himself, so he couldn't hold it against the bird. The silence, however, was a bit awkward since he wasn't used to Revali being able to shut his beak.

So he decided to talk himself, "Your feathers grew back, I see. That was quick."

"We Rito have been around for a long time. It's not like losing feathers is an uncommon occurrence. Harsh winds, hail, molting, stress, age, a lot can cause them to fall out. So we've developed some ingenious tricks to help them regrow."

"... So like... an elixir?"

"...." The Rito looked miffed, "Yes, an elixir."

"You could have just said that."

"And you could have fallen off a cliff, but I suppose neither of us got the more enjoyable option."

Link chuckled a bit and shook his head. For all his pomp and bite, Revali wouldn't have been following him if he really hated him, right? Right. "Well, maybe I'll fall off the edge of Hyrule."

"It sounds too good to be true. I won't hold my breath."

He hummed as they finally passed a hut with clothing inside, and he went in. There wasn't much available, just a single outfit, but it looked thick and warm. And apparently the rubies in the head piece were enchanted to help combat the cold, so that was nice. He put that on almost immediately after buying it (admittedly the braid was very messy) and was relieved to find that it worked just as he'd been told, cutting the chill and making it tolerable. The glider, on the other hand, was a bit more difficult to get. It cost quite a bit more than he had, and the shop keeper wasn't interested in his found wares or haggling down.

He left the shop with a frown, glad to see the bird hadn't left him quite yet, "Uh, Revali? Is there anywhere I could sell things? I... kinda need that glider."

"First, I want to know why this is so important. It's later and you have warm equipment, so you have no excuse left."

"Fine, fine. Look, you... remember that book I read?"

He clearly hadn't forgotten what it said either, since his expression darkened at the mention of the book, "Yes, I remember.... Monsters tried to attack the village. They're getting more aggressive."

"I was worried you'd say something like that. The book mentioned these mazes... kinda. It was vague and just mentioned 'Lomei structures' and a friend of mine told me about the mazes themselves. I can get to two of them on foot, but the last I can't get to unless I can glide there... or suddenly sprout wings. The book said there's something sleeping in the mazes, waiting to be awakened. I know it's important, I already went into the first one and felt the power down there. If it's going to help against whatever is coming for us, I'll do anything."

Revali remained silent for a moment, his eyes trained down, clearly deep in thought. Then he nodded and headed into the store himself, leaving Link mildly confused. He returned a moment later, and held out the folded glider to him, "I can't leave the village to go as far as Akkala right now, not with these monster attacks. And I don't want any of my people off on what might be a wild Cucco chase. So here. Get there yourself."

Link was shocked, but took the glider from Revali with a little nod and a quite thanks. He knew the Rito would never openly wish him luck, he was too proud for that. But he took this as a wordless gesture for "good luck". It meant a lot to him to come from of someone who acts like he has nothing but contempt for Link. He planned to repay the favor whenever he could. For now though, he had all he needed for the trials ahead of him. This gave him hope. Hope that all his efforts would be enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the delay on this chapter, things IRL have been hectic and distracting, and writer's block has hit me hard. I'm still working, but chapter 12 might be more delayed than this one was.


	12. Chapter 12

Link shuddered, teeth chattering as he trudged through the heavy snow. He'd been traveling for nearly three days now, the deep drifts slowing him to a maddening crawl. How any thing could be out here was beyond him, it was freezing! Even with all his protective equipment, the bitter chill still nipped at him and threatened to sink it's icy claws into his flesh. The wind felt like needles, the air burned his lungs, and he all together was miserable. He couldn't wait to leave this frozen wasteland behind. The only marginally decent thing was that it was pretty, but it's kind of hard to admire his surroundings when he felt like he was three degrees shy of being a block of ice. And it only seemed to be getting colder as he struggled further north, or else he may have started to get used to it. He shook himself to get some of the snow off of him and grumbled to himself. He had come to the conclusion that the reason Revali griped so much was because this is where he's from. Anyone from a place like this would have _everything_ to complain about, and Link was the proof.

He continued north, sneaking past packs of mounted Bokoblins and mounds of "snow" that turned out to be Ice Lizalfos, who were very much not as friendly as the Lizalfo tribe he shared the jungle with. It slowed his journey further, but he didn't exactly have a weapon, and fighting in the snow sounded cumbersome and exhausting. But as he neared the edge of Hyrule, a sharp decent down a chasm that seemed all but bottomless, he found a creature he didn't plan on avoiding, a Lynel. He hadn't exactly expected to find one this far north, but he supposed Lynels were adapted not to heat, but to extremes.

This one had a white coat with dark stripes which made her a bit difficult to make out among the snow, and she seemed... nervous. She kept stopping and pawing the ground, moving in a circle as she paced. He was immediately worried about her, and began to approach, slowly. He almost forgot that he wasn't dressed in his usual attire, and therefore probably wouldn't be exactly welcome just by sight. So he waved and called out to her.

"Are you alright?" He had to yell a bit over the howling wind and to cover the distance.

Thankfully, it was obvious she heard him, as she jumped and turned to face him. She stayed still for a moment, clearly confused, then wiped her eyes and looked at him again. Well, people probably rarely came out this way, even more so those who can speak to her, so he didn't blame her hesitation. "... You know the speak?"

Unique way to put it, "Yes, I'm a Zonai, I was-."

"You don't look like one. Except being tiny."

"Uh... yes, I know. But my mother taught me everything I need to know, so it's-"

"A half blood? That's different."

Link frowned a bit, starting to get irritated about the interruptions, "... Anyway. Are you alright? You seem troubled."

The Lynel paused, then nodded, "My mate and I, we don't share territory yet. We've been arguing about where to stay together, here or there. She was supposed to come visit, but I expected her three days ago and she still hasn't showed up. This has never happened before, she's always been so punctual! I'm afraid something happened to her...."

Valkeer came to mind as she said that, and Link gulped, worried. If the Hylians could capture one Lynel, what was stopping them from getting another? "Where does she live?"

"Along the cliff north west of the shadowy ruins. It's rocky there, and I'm always tripping over everything, but she's so sure footed! She didn't fall over, I know it."

Link thought, then looked in the direction she had said. He had been planning on going the southern way around the volcano, assuming that would be easier, but the northern ridge would be more of a direct path to the final labyrinth. It wouldn't be out of his way to check on the Lynel's mate. So he nodded, "I'm going in that direction after this, I can check on her for you?"

"What? You would?" She was shocked, then smiled, "Thank you. Thank you so much, it would take a load off my mind. Her name is Crayga."

"It's no problem, I'm happy to help. I'll find out what's happening, I promise." He waved again, and began to head on his way towards the maze. He still had to do that before he could look for Crayga anyway.

The maze soon began to come into view, just as large and imposing as the first. Though this one had an added layer of foreboding about it. The darkness inside the one before was a welcome relief from the harsh sun. Now, the sun was the only thing besides his clothes offering a bit of heat. The shade just would plunge him into more frigid temperatures. He shuddered at the thought, but he didn't have much choice. He took a deep breath, sighed, then headed inside. And his fears were entirely founded. The dark (though somehow marginally less dim than the desert maze) immediately sank it's frigid claws in him as soon as he stepped through. There wasn't even any relief from the wind. The high, narrow walls trapped he harsh gusts and made them stronger, and they whipped around him as if trying to shove him further into the maze. He couldn't even hear any singing over the howling of the wind.

He swore quietly under his breath and grabbed his shoulders, hugging himself for any bit of warmth he could get. No way to go but forward, he continued on. As he reached the first fork, he finally heard something over the wind, something like a drumbeat. That or a heartbeat, but he preferred to think it was a drum. It made it less unnerving. He headed left, from where he heard it, but stopped before he headed much further.

Somehow, a Bokoblin had managed to make its way in, and it was very clear it was not a normal one. It was bigger than other Bokoblins he'd seen and looked much like the Lynel from before, with silvery white skin and harsh, purple markings, but it's gaze was unfocused. It kind of swayed back and forth unsteadily, and was thinner than it should have been. It seemed to be waiting for something, spiked club held up and prepared for a sneak attack. He was lucky he noticed it around the corner, if he'd just gone that way, well. A sneak attack from that club would have done some serious damage.

This gave him a bad feeling... the Bokoblin seemed so... wrong. And there was something familiar about how it looked and acted.... He couldn't figure out why though, just that it made him worried and on edge. He dug in the snow at his feet and found a small piece of rubble, but it was enough. He used it to distract the Bokoblin, chucking it against a nearby wall with a loud snap. It jumped and turned that direction, then ran for it to attack. And that's when he took his chance. He'd have to deal with it now or later anyway, and now he had the element of surprise, so he leapt for it.

He jumped on the monster's back, flinching as he felt some kind of harsh, static shock on contact. The Bokoblin seemed to get it worse though, as it shrieked and dropped it's club, trying to grab him and throw him off. He grabbed it's ears to steer it a bit, and it began running and crying out. As it neared a wall, he shifted to place his feet on its back and kicked off. It smacked against the wall hard, and he went for the club. He turned, weapon in hand as it began to stand back up. When it saw him holding it's club, it became furious. It stomped around and shouted, then came rushing at him. This he could handle, all he needed to do was keep up the flurry rush. But this Bokoblin moved faster than he'd expected, and it did manage to land a hit against his shoulder. And it _hurt_. It left his arm sore and stinging in a way only far stronger opponents had ever done. This thing had some real power behind it. He needed to be more careful.

He decided not to risk trying to make the flurry rush happen after that. This thing's movements were erratic and unpredictable, as if it weren't thinking even the slightest and just wildly attacking with no regard to anything. He thought about the shock, and the reaction it had, and a plan formed. He moved back as it tried to punch him again, and he grabbed it's wrist. The shock again, and it wailed, trying to twist and pull away from him, but he stood firm. He yelled as he brought the club down on its head, over and over.

With this method, it didn't take long before the Bokoblin finally crumpled to the ground. It had survived far more than it should have, and he was tired from holding it in place and attacking, but at least it was over. He froze though as the body of the creature darkened, shriveled, and burst in a cloud of black and deep purple gas that he quickly backed away from. A few bits and parts were left in its place, a horn, some pulsing organs that made him extremely uncomfortable, and a piece of amber for some reason. He didn't touch it, he didn't want to risk that. He gulped and backed away, looking around as if there would be anyone to confirm he had actually just seen what he'd thought he'd seen.

He jumped and whirled around at the sound of a drumbeat, expecting another attack after that. But no monsters were coming, and the labyrinth was quiet save for the steady drums. He hooked the club onto his backpack and slowly followed the sound, careful to look around every corner for another enemy, which luckily never came. The rest of the way was short, and he found himself descending into the final chamber fairly quickly.

It was a relief down there. It was a good bit warmer and the wind didn't reach this far down. He found himself relaxing, feeling safe in this place, especially after touching the walls to make the runes light up. This time, no voices bombarded him with words. Instead, a faint but steady began to play, and it sounded like a celebration. It made him smile but he had something to do so unfortunately he didn't have much time to just stop and listen. He looked around and found the hole, so he took his glove off, headed over and put his arm through with minimal hesitation. Like last time, there was a long moment of nothing happening until he felt something grab his wrist, but he didn't jerk away this time... much. He opened his hand on his own, and heard a quiet chuckle.

"Ah, this is not the first maze you have entered." This voice was similar to the first, but somehow more gentle and warm despite being a mishmash of tones, "It never is for those taking this challenge. Though usually it is the last. We must thank you for ridding us of that cursed creature."

"The Bokoblin? It was strange. Do you know what was wrong with it?"

"... Unfortunately yes, we do know. And so do you, deep down."

"... A sign that the dragon is getting closer?"

"That is part of it, yes." What he assumed to be a finger began to trace his palm, like the other, "Interesting, very interesting. You know, those of two worlds were very rare among the tribe while they were strong. Living so secluded does lead to minimal contact with the outside. Perhaps they were wrong to be so cut off. Had they been more interwoven with the Hylians, perhaps they would have been able to prevent their end."

Link's curiosity piqued, "What happened to them? Please, I need to know."

"We apologize, but it is not our place to say. On your return trip to your home, you will reunite with one who knows atop a mountainous plateau in the land of the water dragon. It is her duty to inform you."

"Zelda?" He wasn't completely sure what location the voice was talking about, but he doubted it would give him a straight answer. "... She's important, isn't she?"

"Indeed. Equally as important as you are in this story. Power often displays itself when it is needed most. I have faith that all will end well.... For most involved."

"Most?"

The voice refused to elaborate, and simply traced a rune on his wrist before stating, "You feel a shock from nowhere occasionally, yes. You recoil from it. Notice when the shock hurts and when it doesn't, and embrace it when it doesn't. It will aid you."

"... I understand. Thank you."

His arm was released, and he hurried to look at the new rune. This one was a bit more unfamiliar, but he was able to decipher it to be the symbol for 'wild'. Well, it was fitting he guessed. He put his glove back on, nodded towards the hole in the wall, and made his way out. Unfortunately, unlike how the desert maze had seemed less dark after its chamber, this one seemed no less cold, and he was immediately struck with shivers. He really hated this place.

He was surprised by the sight that greeted him just outside the maze. Revali, wing arms crossed, standing there like he'd been waiting. He laughed a bit and waved, calling out, "Aw, did you miss me?"

"Miss you?" Revali seemed offended by the notion, "Hardly. I spent a pile of Rupees on that glider you have, I came to make sure it wasn't wasted on a corpse. I must admit, you surprised me. I didn't think you'd walk out of this maze."

"I'm glad to know you believe so highly in me." Link rolled his eyes.

"... Where did you get that hunk of wood?"

"There was a Bokoblin in there, I took care of it. Hey, you said that monsters are attacking your village? Are... any turning to like... dust when they die?"

"Oh great, let me guess. That's another sign that things are getting worse. Yes, that's happened, and it happens more and more."

Link nodded, "I thought so. Look, it's going to be fine. I'll figure out what to do."

"And why are _so_ special and important?"

That had definitely been something Link had considered before, while on his journey through the snow. Why _did_ he have to be the one to do all this? The answer hadn't come to him before, but it hit him now. "... I'm one of the last of my kind. Maybe the last. I _have_ to be. Imagine if you were the only Rito alive, and you didn't even know half of your culture. That's me. I'm pretty much my people's last shot."

Revali's gaze softened, if only by a margin. Link might have even just imagined it, it was such a subtle change. Then the Rito looked away towards the mountain, and nodded, "You have places to go then. You better hurry."

Link nodded, "Thank you."

Revali huffed, then summoned his cyclone and flapped to shoot up into the sky without another word. Link smiled a bit, then hurried off. He had a Lynel to find and a maze to get to.

***

Deep below, in an area she never would have thought to look, Zelda finally found it. A collection of books and journals, tied in a blanket and hastily stuffed into a tiny, hidden chamber underneath the sanctum. She'd found it by accident, late at night in near total darkness, when it was safest for her to snoop around. She'd been tired from her ceaseless searching and had turned the wrong way, getting lost in the secret passages beneath the castle. She had panicked and ran, trying to find the way she had come, only to fall down through what once may have been a trap door, but had long since rotted away due to time and neglect. And there it had been, buried by a thick layer of dust that had threatened to choke her.

Getting it and herself out of there hadn't been easy, but the ladder had thankfully only broken once as she climbed it, and it was a lower rung she could deal without having. And, with the sunrise, light had begun to shine through from above in certain places, and she could guess roughly were she was. It was the wait after that was truly torture. She hadn't felt safe diving into the books during the day when she could be caught. Given the nature of how and where they were hidden, she expected these tomes would not be appreciated by her father in the slightest, and she would get far more than a talking to.

When finally she had been able to study the books, she had been shocked. They were all journals, and the first was detailed accounts of interactions between Hylians and other the races, including the Zonai, confirming they had indeed once been at peace. It also confirmed the Calamity, as it was called. It was described like a war, a brutal and bloody struggle between the races all fighting as one, and the black dragon with an army of enraged monsters. The book described many of the monsters and the dragon as having some kind of rolling flames on them, with large, black, gelatinous growths. She shuddered to think about it.

Then she arrived at the moment of victory. The book was vague about the Zonai warrior, though he was mentioned, but explained extensively about the woman. It had made Zelda's breath hitch to see her own name in the writing. It wasn't news that she wasn't the first "Princess Zelda", her family tree was positively overrun with them. But to see it mentioned in this context, her ancestor using what was called a sacred sealing power, to banish the dragon and cause the monsters to flee....

It made her nervous. If this dragon truly was going to return in her lifetime like it so seemed it would... would she have to do the same? She had never heard even the most passing mention of a sacred power in her, and now she would have to be competent enough to just... use it on command? She had gulped and shut the book. She could very well be integral to saving all of Hyrule, and she didn't have the slightest clue on how. She shook her head and frowned. Right now, she could keep looking. Maybe these journals had more answers.

She continued browsing, finding a diary and learning that the writer had been a Shiekah, and a historian and scientist tasked with recording ancient history. It was dated, and she found that these were written around a hundred years ago. She read as they mentioned advancements in technology, their understanding of magic growing, and tensions rising between the races. She frowned as they described the new king's ambitions, to force monsters, dragons, and anyone who posed a risk into submission in order to bring peace to the land and to cease the tensions. And she felt herself become as sick as the writer expressed being as the plan was laid out on paper, detailed diagrams forcing her to slam the book shut. Her ancestors... the atrocities they had considered for the sake of their rule.... The journal sketches had only been copies though, according to the notes. Where were the blueprints?

Her eyes widened and she covered her mouth. They would have been kept in the past king's study. Was _that_ what happened to the Zonai? Had Rhoam found the notes and blueprints and... oh Hylia.... Was that why her father wanted Link alive? No. _Needed _him alive.__

__She jumped to her feet and began to pack for a journey. There was no way she'd be able to get to him on her own. Security had been raised so much after her temporary disappearance that it would be impossible to sneak out again, and even if she could, he very well could be off investigating as he said he would. She needed help, and soon, from anyone. And there was only person she could trust and get to on such short notice. Come daylight again, and she would request a trip to Zora's Domain._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somehow I managed a chapter this week! With any luck, I'll be able to get in a rhythm again.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this chapter is so late, it's been very hectic IRL, so this was a small bit rushed.

Link narrowed his eyes, hunkering behind a large stone for cover. He'd come to the place that the Lynel on the snowfields had said her mate would be, and he found what was causing the problem. Hylian soldiers and a heavy blockade. He could see Crayga, another white and striped Lynel, pacing furiously beyond the blockade. She had tried to smash through it or jump over it at least three times since he'd arrived, and all attempts were a failure. And Link could guess why. The barricades set up had odd carvings on them, inlaid with some glowing green material that gave him the creeps. He wasn't sure what it was, but her noises on contact made it very clear that it wasn't fun to touch. The one time she'd tried to spit fireballs through it, they had exploded upon reaching the barrier in a shower of embers and green sparks.

He'd been observing this for a while now to try and figure out what threats he was facing. But, honestly, there weren't many soldiers, and they weren't heavily armed at all. Which, since they had some sort of magical barrier to protect them, wasn't altogether unsurprising. He did notice one unusual piece of equipment. A soldier, who he guessed was in charge, carrying a wand very similar to the ones Wizrobes wield, but in an darker green to the barrier and not glowing. He wanted to know what all this was about, and had slowly been inching closer and closer to their encampment to try and catch anything said. And finally, he was close enough to catch snippets.

"We will stay for two more days." He assumed that was the commander or captain or whatever they called themselves, "That's how long we can last on our rations and still make it back without going hungry. If that shipment doesn't arrive before then, it's a lost cause. We can't catch the thing if the wand doesn't have any power."

"What is this stuff anyway? "

"No idea, some sort of jelly? All I know is that it recharges these wands, and it makes things real docile. One wave of this wand, and I could make anyone it hits completely compliant, if it was working. It's apparently stupidly hard to get a hold of though, so I guess it's an import. There's only four or so of these wands that I know of, and the king keeps one for himself, of course." The soldier tched and shook their head, "Of course he couldn't send us off with the working one, had to send the one with only one damn charge left. That wouldn't have been enough to get this beast back to the coliseum anyway, the effect doesn't even last that long! Ever since that Zonai escaped, he's been all over the place!"

The other nodded, crossing their arms, "Yeah, but I'd be on edge too. Who knows what all those monsters are capable of? They needed to be wiped out."

Link bit back a growl, but he did bare his teeth in a silent snarl. They really believed that, huh? That his people deserved to be murdered? He had counted seven soldiers. He could deal with that. He snuck away from his temporary hiding spot to one that he could stay in for far longer, and waited. The soldiers all went to their tents and slept come nightfall, no guard set up to protect themselves. They were over confident, and he could use that. He crept out of hiding probably an hour or so after the last soldier went to bed, just to make sure none would wake up as he went to work. He snuck into the first tent he came across.

He ignored the sleeping knight for now, instead digging around to find any weapon he could and eventually found a small knife that seemed to have been used to spread butter on bread judging by the smear on the edge. He checked to make sure it was still sharp and nodded in approval. Then he looked at the knight, and he hesitated. Sure, he can plan out killing someone in their sleep, but actually executing it... it was far harder. Especially considering the fact that they had their helmet off and he could see their face. That made it so much more personal, and he still just couldn't bring himself to murder in cold blood. Valkeer would probably be ashamed of him.

He shook his head, put the knife in his pack, and decided to go at this in a different way. He dug around some more and grabbed clothing. He worked fast, starting by tying the clothing around the knight's mouth quickly as they woke up, groggy and confused and scrambling to do something. He was quicker though, and managed to hogtie them before they came to full awareness. They grunted under the makeshift gag and squirmed, but clearly couldn't get out easily. He didn't linger, and headed for the next tent to do the same. He managed to incapacitate six of the soldiers without making too much noise or having too much trouble. He made sure to leave one knocked out but without their feet tied so they could have a chance to untie themselves later. Otherwise, they'd all probably be doomed anyway, and it didn't sit right with him.

Finally he reached the final tent, the one with the leader. Before dealing with them, he wanted to get a good look at this wand though. It took some searching, but he finally found it hidden away in a small, wooden chest. Being this near, seeing it so up close, it made him nervous. The cold chill he felt when he looked at it was similar to what he felt near graveyards. He shook it off, it was just a wand for Hylia's sake! So he reached in to grab it.

The second his hand brushed against the handle of the wand, there was a spark of green, and it felt like he was sliced open by a Lightning Spear. It was a cold, electric burn that shot up his arm and left him feeling numb and tingling, and he recoiled from it. He grabbed his hand, hissing through his teeth in pain. What just happened? He cast a glare at the wand, and suddenly felt overwhelming dread. It had begun glowing, active.

Link wanted nothing to do with it, and slammed the lid of the chest shut with no consideration for how much noise he was making. At least not until he heard the soldier begin waking up. He whipped around as the knight opened their eyes. They immediately jumped to their feet, letting out a shocked yell, and he jumped at them. He barely even registered what he was doing, his body moving on instinct as his mind tried and failed to catch up with him. In fact, he was having trouble thinking at all. It's as if his mind had suddenly become mud, and all his thoughts had to fight through it. All he knew was that one moment he leapt, and the next he had his knee on the knight's head, their arms crossed and pinned behind their back, and he had no idea how he'd ended up this way. What had that wand done to him?

He shook his head and got to tying up the soldier as a migraine slowly began to take root. Wonderful, pain, just what he needed. He finished the task at hand and stood, then cast another glare to the chest. That wand, wherever it came from, was bad, and he needed to get rid of it. So he picked up the little chest and took it with him. Chucking off the edge of Hyrule should do the job. Now he just had one last thing to do.

He headed for the blockade but paused. If the wand had done whatever had just happened without being powered, he didn't want to know what these things would do if he just went about touching them. There had to be a way to deactivate them or something, or else the soldiers wouldn't have been able to bring them here. His eyes drifted to the chest, wondering if that accursed wand had anything to do with that. Only one way to find out. He dug in his pack and pulled out the blanket he had original been using to carry his things, and wrapped it around his hand like a mitten hoping it would offer him some protection. Then he opened the chest and flinched away from the wand within. It was like it was setting off his fight or flight response, that primal urge in all creatures to survive, and he felt stupid for going to grab it again. Thankfully, the blanket worked, and he wasn't shocked (or whatever that was) by it again.

Now that he had a chance, he took a marginally closer look at it. It was thicker than other wands he'd seen, and had green, oval shaped jewels on either end of it, making it look something like a scroll case. He really wasn't interested to see if it had anything inside though, that would require touching it more and he was uncomfortable enough as it was. He wasn't really sure how to use the thing, but he didn't think it would be hard to figure out. So he just tapped one of the jewels against the stone barricade. Immediately there was a bright flash and a loud bang that left him momentarily blinded and deafened, and he reeled back away from the cause. His sight, thankfully, came back fairly quickly with a lot of blinking, though it seemed like all he'd be hearing for a while would be this awful, high pitched ringing.

He was lucky enough to regain his sight in time to see Crayga running over. He wasn't surprised, that blast could have woke the dead, he was certain. It was worth it though, the barrier was no longer glowing. He waved to her, and that stopped her advance as she stared at him, clearly confused. Right, she couldn't tell by looking at him that he was on her side.

He threw the wand into the chest, then pointed at his ear, "I can't hear you right now. Can't hear anything. Are you Crayga?" She jumped back a bit, but then rushed over with a very excited expression. She was nodding furiously, her babbling unheard. He shook his head, "No, wait, I really can't hear you. The uh... the boom."

He was pretty sure that mouthing was an "Oh." Maybe he should have learned lip reading. He watched as she tapped her hoof against the barricade, then grin, pick it up, and chuck it. He didn't even see it land, she had tossed it so hard, but he couldn't blame her. If he'd been trapped in a wall of knee high rocks by magic, he'd be ready to throw things himself. She did it again and again until all the stones were scattered or lost, and she looked very proud of herself. Meanwhile, he had unwrapped his hand and closed the chest. He was starting to hear muffled sounds past the ringing, which he took at a good sign.

He waved to Crayga and she came trotting over to him with a wide grin. He gestured towards the west and said, "Your mate on the snowfields sent me, she was worried about you. The Hylians know you come through this way, so you might want to stay there with her. They could set this up again."

Crayga nodded, and very loudly and slowly stated, "Thank you! I owe you one!"

He smiled and waved goodbye to her as she headed on her way. Now he just needed to deal with this chest and he could get back on track himself. Which it wasn't difficult to dispose of, all he had to do was walk north until he reached the chasm, and throw it off the side. He had thought about keeping it just in case but... it just felt evil, for lack of a better description. It was just evil. Good riddance. He stated down the ravine for a long while, glaring after the box, before finally heading on his way. He couldn't linger forever, he had things to do.

***

Zora's Domain always had looked so beautiful to Zelda. It's gentle glow, it's waterfalls, it's incredible architecture, it all seemed so mystical. But today was not a day she could spend admiring it. She had pressing matters to attend to that couldn't wait. She had been able to convince her escorts to stay just outside the domain, how she wasn't even sure herself, and had made her way inside to find the one person she could let know about the trouble ahead.

It didn't take long, thankfully, since Mipha was waiting just outside the throne room for her. Good, her letter had made it to the Zora, that helped her a great deal. She waved to her friend to get her attention, and the smile she received in return did put her at ease a bit.

"Hello Zelda." Mipha said pleasantly, her voice as soft and gentle as always, "I take it you had a safe journey?"

"Yes, though we had a few incidents with monster. None lead to full fights though."

"Oh good. Monsters have been a real problem for us recently too. Thankfully there's been no attacks on the Domain, but I can't just relax. Even our guardian seems to be on edge. It just sits on that mountain top staring to the west all day long now."

"I noticed that when we came in. It never moves at all?" Zelda turned to look towards the peak in question. Even from here, she could see the dragon in question, squat and round with a short, stubby tail and a long face framed by massive frills. It almost didn't look like a lizard.

"Not anymore. It used to turn it's head to look if anyone got close, but now it doesn't even do that. It's like it's waiting for something."

"... I think it is."

Mipha turned her gaze back to Zelda, concerned, "Is... that what this visit is for?"

"I wish I was here just to spend time with you, but yes. That is partially why I'm here. Is there... anywhere we could talk alone?"

"Well... Shatterback Mountain has still been quiet lately. It's too mountainous for monsters to easily get up their own their own. It should be a safe place to discuss this."

Zelda nodded, "Alright, let's go then. Do you think there's any way we can go without getting my guards involved?"

Mipha chuckled slightly and lowered her voice, "We have never failed to find a way around our escorts before, have we?"

"Not that I can remember." Zelda laughed quietly herself, a welcome break from the tension she had building up in her. Going to Mipha already had proven to be a good idea.

Mipha began to lead the way and Zelda followed, casting one last glance to the dragon standing guard atop the mountain. She wondered if the other three had perched themselves as well, or if it was only this one because of its location. How close was the black dragon now? How long did they have to prepare. She couldn't imagine it was very long, not with all the signs. As she looked up at the dragon, though she was much too far away to see any kind of expression, she had a feeling that it looked almost... scared.


End file.
